Unknown Facts: Bhausaheb Nimbalkar, who almost broke Don's record, enters Wisden

City-based cricketer Bhausaheb Nimbalkar, who was just nine runs short of breaking Sir Don Bradman's then highest individual innings record of 454 in first-class cricket back in 1948, has been recognized by India edition of Wisden magazine.

Nimbalkar passed away on December 11, 2012.

Under the headline 'Nimbalkar, the nearly man', Clayton Murzello has written about the cricketer's performance during a Ranji Trophy match between Maharashtra and Kathiawar in December 1948 in Pune.

R A Patankar, head of Kolhapur District Cricket Association, said, "It was surprising that despite being such a top cricketer and recording a landmark performance, Nimbalkar never made attempts to attract publicity or expressed disappointment for not being selected for the national side. He was not only a fantastic cricketer but also encouraged women's cricket in Kolhapur by organising matches. He gave a strong message to the society to open the gates of sports for women."

"But there is little doubt that the story of his career revolves around two memorable days in December 1948 when he scored 443 not out, which is still the highest score by an Indian in first class cricket. Kathiawar were all out for 238 in the first innings and Nimbalkar, who came in at No. 3 for Maharashtra, added 455 runs for the second wicket with Kamal Bhandarkar, which was a first-class record for 43 years."

The magazine has compared Nimbalkar's performance with Bradman, who had scored 452 not out playing for New South Wales against Queensland in Sydney in 1930. In the article, the author mentioned how the team carried off Bradman from the ground after the match was over. Bradman's photograph with detailed information was published in almost every newspaper in Australia. However, Nimbalkar's fate was different as his performance didn't find any mention in local publications.

The most surprising and interesting part was the way Nimbalkar missed the chance to cross Bradman's record. Nimbalkar batted for 494 minutes across two days for his innings. Thakore Saheb, the captain of Kathiawar, refused to return to the field after the lunch break on Day 4. By that time, Maharashtra had posted a mammoth score of 826 for 4. The match came to an abrupt end and Nimbalkar was deprived of a famous world record.

Source: Times of India