Independent India had many problems to face from its infancy. These created tensions which led to divisions, sometimes leading to bloodshed, and figured prominently in the political agenda and in the Indian Constitution. But there was considerable goodwill for India. Many nations extended their hand in friendship and offered co-operation and economic aid. A huge, poor, over-populated, and newly-independent India suffered shortages of all kinds – food, fuel, technology, transport facilities, schools, roads, materials for primary education, in short, every essential component of life.
Yet, India battled on. Her sheer physical size, population and inspiring independence struggle under Gandhiji caught public attention. Despite poverty and other problems, poor India did not withdraw from the sports arena nor from international sporting events. Though not fully independent, our national cricket team undertook a full tour of England in 1946, and despite pangs of Partition, toured Australia in1947-48. No one bothered that we were thrashed by Don Bradman’s powerful team. The world admired how we rose to these challenges. In 1948-49, we hosted the West Indies team for a full tour.
Tours by foreign teams even then attracted huge crowds, but no tour was planned for 1949-50. Indian and foreign cricket authorities did not want to miss out on the financial bonanza of a 1949-50 winter tour. But with the international tour calendar full, no foreign country could tour India. The English winter was going barren and its cricketers were all set to lose a lucrative official foreign tour. English cricket brains came together and under former England wicketkeeper and Lancashire player, George Duckworth, planned a threemonth unofficial Indian tour with players from cricket playing nations who were free and not committed to official matches. Though some of the top ranking English and Australian professionals were resting, there was a lot of talent available from these two nations (including former test players), besides star players from West Indies, New Zealand and so on. A powerful 17-member team was chosen with Duckworth as manager. ‘Jock’ Livingstone, former Australian Tribe, Tribal and Tribal Cricket opener who played for Northamptonshire in English county cricket was made captain, the great West Indian batsman Frankie Worrell was the vice- captain and the team had enough variety and all round brilliance.
But for one name, George Tribe, an Australian all-rounder who had played three or four test matches for his country. The Indian cricket Board was puzzled at Tribe’s inclusion because they did not know anything about him. Intrigued by his name ‘Tribe’, Indian Board officials wondered what kind of a tribal he was. Was he an Australian tribal, an untouchable, who would not be welcome in India? Was he a genuine Aborigine and kept out of Australian mainstream? How would he integrate with the rest of the Indian and Australian teams? Cricket, especially English cricket always had such divisions, like the “Players” and “Gentlemen”,, where the former played cricket for a livelihood and had toput up with an inferior status, while the ‘gentlemen’ played cricket for pleasure, were treated as royals and always led England. This led to strange anomalies.
The nation’s top cricketers like Hutton, Compton or Alec Bedser ( No. 1 bowler) could not share hotel accommodation with ‘gentlemen’ like Peter May, Norman Yardley, who were addressed as ‘Sir’ by the professionals. They had different entrances and exits from the ground.
It was clearly a caste system which existed well into the 1960’s. A shadow of this was revealed in the ‘Tribe’ affair in India during the Commonwealth team’s tour. But India was more tolerant. India’s princes got along well with Tribe who returned to India with the next Commonwealth team. Tribe was not isolated, he visited palaces, monuments and other sights without any problems and performed brilliantly for his team, which won the series. He was not interviewed by the Tribal authorities of the Government of India, nor taken to visit tribal colonies. It was clear he was a ‘Tribe’, but not a ‘tribal’. That is INDIA FOR YOU!
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V. Gangadhar
The writer is a well-known satirist.[/column]