Uvais Karnain hooking that famous six off Derek Stirling of New Zealand over the Galle Road into the Velona Factory premises on the other side of the road. After Karnain returned to the pavilion, Sri Lanka Coach Garry Sobers hugged Karnain and lifted him saying in his usual Caribbean accent: “It was a brilliant shot maaan, I loved it” Photo S. Shivaraj[/caption]
* Six went over Galle Road to the Velona Factory compound
* An unbeatable world record
* Sri Lanka beat powerful New Zealanders
* Coach Garry Sobers is ecstatic
Rewind to 1984 in Moratuwa. Here is a defining moment of a forgotten hero, Shaul Hameed Uvais Karnain. A dream debut, a six out of the park, a world record, and a memorable victory.
Born on 11 August 1962 in Colombo, Uvais Karnain had already represented Sri Lanka in hockey. Having captained his school Isipathana College, Colombo in both hockey and cricket in 1980 and 1981, the 21-year-old is now named in the Sri Lanka squad for the New Zealand tour of Sri Lanka. Three Tests and three ODIs (One-day Internationals).
Debut in Moratuwa
His school cricket Coach was Mike Chanmugam. But as a 19-year-old, Karnain had represented Sri Lanka at the Asia Cup hockey in Pakistan in 1981. Pakistan was the hockey world champions then. Sri Lanka played on Astro Turf for the first time in that tournament.
Yet, continuing his cricket more seriously, Karnain played for Colts and NCC clubs post his school career.
In Moratuwa, on Saturday, 31 March 1984, Sri Lanka were to meet the Kiwis in the second ODI of a three-match series. Sri Lanka had already lost the three-match Test series 2-0 and the tourists were leading the ODIs 1-0 after winning the first one by 104 runs at SSC. Our hero Karnain is to make his international cricket debut. A world record was in the making.
Corwes and crows
The Kiwis, led by Geoff Howarth, featured John Wright, Bruce Edgar, Lance Cairns, the famous Crowe brothers --Martin and Jeff Crowe--, Jeremy Coney, Richard Hadlee, Ian Smith, Ewen Chatfield, and Derek Stirling.
The Sri Lankan team included Duleep Mendis, Sidath Wettimuny, Brendon Kuruppu, Ranjan Madugalle, Arjuna Ranatunga, Aravinda de Silva, Ravi Ratnayeke, Vinothen John, Guy de Alwis, and Somachandra (D.S.) de Silva.
Sri Lanka was then a fighting bunch of cricketers under Coach Sir Garfield Sobers. They were always considered very hard to be beaten at home, especially in the ODIs.
As if to ascertain that fact, the minuscule Moratuwa Stadium or Soysa Park was packed that day to the full with the happy-go-lucky Moratuwa fans. Cheerleader Percy was doing his usual rounds with his national flag in his hands. And whenever one of the Crowe brothers came near the boundary line, the crowd shouted “kaak, kaak”, prompting younger Martin Crowe to react waving both his arms emulating the crow to the utter joy of the spectators.
Three debutantes
The overnight rains had delayed the start of the match. Then Sri Lanka Cricket Board President Gamini Dissanayake had called an Air Force helicopter to hover close to the turf to dry it quickly. Soon began the match, not as a usual 45-over affair but as one with 40 overs per side.
This happened to be an important game on many counts. Other than Karnain, this was the first international match of the 18-year-old Aravinda de Silva. The third debutant was right-arm fast bowler from New Zealand, Derek Stirling.
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Karnain is now one of the junior national cricket selectors[/caption]
Sri Lanka makes 157/8
Inserted to bat under overcast conditions, Sri Lanka were reduced to 69/5. Aravinda faced 23 balls for only eight runs before he was clean-bowled by Hadlee as the fifth man to get out. The 20-year-old Arjuna came in, got one from Cairns, top-edged it onto his lips, and left to the pavilion injured. He was wearing a helmet, yet without visors.
That was the moment when debutant Karnain, 21 then, had to come in. He joined Ravi Ratnayeke in the middle. But Ratnayeke ran himself out for 12 when the total was 81.
Karnain rose to the occasion. He whacked a quick-fire 24-ball 28, inclusive of three fours and a six in his nearly 40-minute stay at the crease. When he got out, Sri Lanka were 110/7. Arjuna returned to the middle and saw them to a respectable 157/8 in their 40 overs (3.92 per an over). The injured Ranatunga eventually top-scored with an unbeaten 60-ball 50.
That “Velona sixer”
The highlight of the Lankan innings was the massive “sixer” hoisted by our man Uvais Karnain, which sailed over the Moratuwa Stadium pavilion and ended up at the Velona Factory on the other side of the adjacent Galle Road. Stirling was the bowler. They say Stirling couldn’t bear the brunt of that six, so to say. Being one who was faster than even Sir Hadlee at the time, his international career didn’t flourish as expected.
After Karnain returned to the pavilion, Sri Lanka Coach Garry Sobers hugged lanky Karnain and lifted him shouting in his usual Caribbean accent, “It was a brilliant shot maaan, I loved it”. True to form, Sobers had always asked the Lankans to “whack it hard” whenever they batted, no matter who the bowler was, instilling in them the real Caribbean attitude.
The Kiwis could never settle in, in their reply. What was a formidable batting unit, it was in total disarray soon as since “the quickest of the local lot” Vinothen John sent back opener Wright for three runs, just before tea. The right-arm medium pacer Karnain took over from there. It was demolition time for the Lankans.
The quintessential Man of the Match
New Zealand are to lose their next three wickets against Karnain. He sent back Edgar (ct. De Alwis 12), Howarth (b. 12), and Cairns (b. 5) for a total of 39. Then there was a stoppage for rain. After the resumption, Karnain removed Jeff Crowe (lbw 9) and the great Martin Crowe (ct. De Alwis 9).
The Kiwis’ run chase was in disarray losing seven for 76. They were eventually bowled out in 34 overs for 116. Hadlee and Stirling made 13 runs each, the innings’ top score.
As the sun set that day in the nearby Indian Ocean, the parties began at the coastal Moratuwa, one of the most cricket-mad localities in the whole island which is also famed for its fun and frolic, music and arts. Sri Lanka has beaten a strong cricketing nation featuring world famous legends in their ranks. New Zealand lost the match by 41 runs. Karnain’s final figures read 8-1-26-5 (an econ of 3.35). He was the obvious choice for the Man of the Match.
His career continued
But on 1 April, the Kiwis prevailed over the hosts in the decisive third ODI at P. Sara, winning it by 86 runs. They clinched the series 2-1.
Karnain made four international tours for Sri Lanka thereafter. He went to Australia for the Benson & Hedges World Series, twice to Sharjah, and another tour to Zimbabwe.
He played 19 ODIs between 1984 and 1990 taking 16 wickets at 31.56. He scored 229 runs with the bat at 19.08 with the highest score being 41 not out. He did not play any Tests. And never came again a moment that was as jubilant as that Moratuwa ODI in 1984, where he rocked the whole cricket world with an astonishing international debut that made Sir Sobers saying “I love it maan”.
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The Galle Road adjacent to the Moratuwa Stadium now. Onto the right was the old Velona Garment Factory[/caption]
Sobers asked me to ‘hit that out of the ground’: Karnain
In that series against New Zealand in 1984, I was picked only as the 12th man. The Test series had been over by then.
Those days, they used to tell us only before the toss that we are going to play. When we were warming up in Moratuwa (before the second ODI), our Coach Sir Sobers came near me and said: “Karnain, you are playing.” I didn’t believe it. Then he confirmed that both myself and Aravinda are going to play that match.
On helmets
I went in to bat after Arjuna returned to the pavilion. He had been hit on his lips. His helmet didn’t have a visor. The entire Sri Lanka team had one or two helmets those days. We used to share those. Arjuna had one which he had got from England. Then Duleep and Roy had their own helmets. Other than those, the rest of the team had only three or four helmets. Those helmets had only a plastic visor. Only when we went to Australia the same year that we got helmets with a mesh.
The “Velona Sixer”
Stirling was bowling a bouncer at me. By then he was considered faster that even Richard Hadlee. I was batting at the pavilion end. I hooked it. The ball went over the pavilion and ended up in the Velona Factory after going over Galle Road.
Later, I got out caught by Cairns at extra cover off Martin Crowe. When I came back to the pavilion, Sir Sobers hugged me and lifted me. He said: “I like that shot maaan. A brilliant shot. I loved it.” Those words I still remember.
Sobers’ advice
Those days, we were not bothered (about) who was bowling at us. We just wanted to play our shots. Sobers told me before that match: “Karnain, I know you like to hit the ball. If you are hitting, hit it out of the ground.” No one has given me such confidence earlier. Others have only told me, “stay there, don’t do this, don’t do that” etc. But he was asking me to hit that out of the ground. That was like a (vitamin) B12 injection for me.
After the victory
Karnain in Sri Lanka squad for the Rothmans Asia Cup at the Sharjah Cricket Stadium, UAE in April 1984. (back row, from left): Jayantha Amerasinghe, Ishak Sahabdeen, Uvais Karnain, Vinothen John, and Ravi Ratnayeke. (front row, from left): Ranjan Madugalle, Somachandra de Silva, Duleep Mendis (Captain), and Major-General Bertram Heyn (Manager)[/caption]
Karnain’s was world’s first five-wicket haul on ODI debut
There are 4,258 One-Day Internationals (ODIs) that have been played so far, between 1971 to date, yet there are only 14 instances where a bowler has taken five wickets or more on his ODI debut
1. Uvais Karnain in 1984 for Sri Lanka, vs. New Zealand in Sri Lanka (5/26)
2. Tony Dodemaide in 1988 for Australia, vs. Sri Lanka in Australia (5/21)
3. Allan Donald in 1991 for South Africa, vs. India in India (5/29)
4. Charitha Buddhika in 2001 for Sri Lanka, vs. Zimbabwe in UAE (5/67)
5. Austin Codrington in 2003 for Canada, vs. Bangladesh in South Africa (5/27)
6. Fidel Edwards in 2003 for West Indies, vs. Zimbabwe in Zimbabwe (6/22)
7. Brian Vitori in 2011 for Zimbabwe, vs. Bangladesh in Zimbabwe (5/30)
8. Taskin Ahmed in 2014 for Bangladesh, vs. India in Bangladesh (5/28)
9. Craig Young in 2014 for Ireland, vs. Scotland in Ireland (5/46)
10. Mustafizur Rahman in 2015 for Bangladesh, vs. India in Bangladesh (5/50)
11. Kagiso Rabada in 2015 for South Africa, vs. Bangladesh in Bangladesh (6/16)
12. Dasun Shanaka in 2016 for Sri Lanka, vs. Vs. Ireland in Ireland (5/46)
13. Jake Ball in 2016 for England, vs. Bangladesh in Bangladesh (5/51)
14. Jan Frylinck in 2019 for Namibia, vs. Oman in Namibia (5/13)