Bhagwat Subramanya Chandrasekhar (informally Chandra; born 17 May 1945) is an Indian former cricketer who played as a leg spinner. Considered among the top echelon of leg spinners, Chandrasekhar along with E.A.S. Prasanna, Bishen Singh Bedi and Srinivasaraghavan Venkataraghavan constituted the Indian spin quartet that dominated spin bowling during the 1960s and 1970s. At a very young age, polio left his right arm withered. Chandrasekhar played 58 Test matches, capturing 242 wickets at an average of 29.74 in a career that spanned sixteen years. He was named as a Wisden Cricketer of the Year in 1972; in 2002 he won Wisdens award for "Best bowling performance of the century" for India, for his six wickets for 38 runs against England at the Oval in 1971. He received the C. K. Nayudu Lifetime Achievement Award in 2004, the highest honour bestowed by BCCI on a former player.

Biography

Chandrasekhar was born in 1945 in Mysore, where he had his primary education. He developed an early interest in cricket watching the playing styles of Australian leg spinner Richie Benaud. An attack of polio at the age of six left his right arm withered. At the age of 10, his hand had recovered and Chandrasekhar started playing cricket. Wisden noted that he was "wonderfully accurate for a bowler of his type, and his extra pace made him a formidable proposition even on the sluggish Oval pitch." His consistent bowling performances in 1971 earned him being named one of the five Wisden Cricketers of the Year in 1972. Chandrasekhar also played a major role in India's victory in Australia in 1977–78.

Chandrasekhar had minimal batting skills, finishing with a Test average of 4.07. He was given a special Gray-Nicholls bat during the 1977–78 Australian tour with a hole in it to commemorate the four ducks he scored, and he has 23 Test ducks to his credit. He also holds the dubious distinction of scoring fewer runs (167) off his bat than wickets (242) taken in Test cricket;

Honours and recognitions

  • Indian Cricket Cricketer of the Year in 1964
  • Wisden Cricketers of the Year in 1972
  • Padmashri in 1972
  • Arjuna Award in 1972
  • C. K. Nayudu Award in 2004