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| Full name | Farokh Maneksha Engineer | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Born | (1938-02-25)25 February 1938 (age 87) Bombay,Bombay Province,British India | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Batting | Right-handed | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Role | Wicket-keeper-batsman | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| International information | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| National side |
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| Test debut (cap 102) | 1 December 1961 v England | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Last Test | 23 January 1975 v West Indies | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| ODI debut (cap 3) | 13 July 1974 v England | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Last ODI | 14 June 1975 v New Zealand | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Domestic team information | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Years | Team | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| 1959/60–1974/75 | Bombay | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| 1961/62–1974/75 | West Zone | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| 1968–1976 | Lancashire | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Career statistics | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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Source:CricketArchive(subscription required),15 December 2023 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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Farokh Maneksha Engineer (pronunciationⓘ) (born 25 February 1938) is an Indian formercricketer. He was awicket-keeper-batsman, usually anopening batsman, who representedIndia in 46Test matches from 1961 to 1975. Infirst-class cricket, he played forBombay from 1959/60 to 1974/75, forWest Zone from 1961/62 to 1974/75, and forLancashire County Cricket Club from 1968 to 1976. He was the first-choice wicket-keeper for theRest of the World team which touredEngland in 1970 andAustralia in 1971–72. Engineer is the first Man of the Match for India in the Men's Cricket World Cup because of his performance (54* & a catch) againstEast Africa in the1975 Cricket World Cup.[1]
Engineer is the last male member of theParsi community to have played for India,[2] althoughArzan Nagwaswalla was selected for the international squad in 2021.[3]
Engineer was born 25 February 1938 into aParsi family inBombay.[4][5] His father Manecksha was a doctor by profession, and his mother, Minnie was a housewife. Engineer studied at theDon Bosco High School inMatunga and later atPodar College, also in Matunga.[6] Engineer became a student at theUniversity of Bombay and, in 1958/59, played cricket for both their team and theIndian Universities team. He joinedBombay in 1959, though he continued to play for the Universities until 1961/62.[7]
During his childhood, Engineer's first ambition was to be apilot.[2] However, he developed a love for sports from his father who playedtennis and was himself a club cricketer. Farokh's older brother, Darius, was also a good club cricketer. He once took Farokh to the East Stand of theBrabourne Stadium, where they sawDenis Compton fielding. Farokh called to Compton who gave him a piece of chewing gum which he saved as his prized possession for many years.[8] His father enrolled him in Dadar Parsi Colony Sporting Club where he learned the nuances of the game from the seniors and later became a regular member of the team.[4]
NOTE:All content in this section was moved to workspace because ofsourcing andPOV issues. A rewrite is in progress.
Engineer played in 46Test matches forIndia from 1961/62 to 1974/75. He also played in fiveODIs, all in 1974/75. He scored 2,611 runs in Tests, including two centuries with a highest score of 121. He took 66catches and completed 16stumpings.[9]
Engineer made his Test debut on 1 December 1961 when India playedEngland at theModi Stadium inKanpur. It was the second Test of the1961/62 series. Engineer replacedBudhi Kunderan as wicket-keeper in the Indian team, and these two players competed for the role until Kunderan's retirement in 1967.[10] The first Test, played three weeks earlier, had beendrawn.[11] India,captained byNari Contractor, won the toss at Kanpur and batted first. Engineer was ninth man in at 414/7 and joinedPolly Umrigar. They added 53 for the eighth wicket until Engineer was stumped byJohn Murray for 33. Contractordeclared as soon as the wicket fell with India on 467/8 and Umrigar 147not out. Engineer's first dismissal as a Test wicket-keeper was England openerPeter Richardson, whom he caught offSubhash Gupte for 22. Engineer later caughtDavid Allen offChandu Borde. England wereall out for 244 and Contractor enforced thefollow-on. With well over a day's play remaining, India hoped to dismiss England again and win the match, but England recovered well to score 497/5 with centuries byGeoff Pullar,Ken Barrington, and their captainTed Dexter. The match ended in a draw.[10]
"He finds both cricket and life fun; he laughs easily and his jokes are often very funny but he can be grave. His appeals are as loud as anyone's yet off the field he is quietly spoken. As a batsman or wicketkeeper he is aggressive, yet he is a man of consideration and courtesy. There has always been a quality of generosity about his cricket and his way of life".
In 1968, when English cricket allowed itscounty clubs to sign overseas players, Engineer joinedLancashire alongside West Indies batsmanClive Lloyd. He spent nine seasons there, until he retired in 1976.[13] Lancashire had not won a major honour since 1950 but, while Engineer and Lloyd played for them, they became a highly successfullimited overs team, winning theGillette Cup four times and theJohn Player League twice.[4]
Engineer was playing for Lancashire in 1970 when he was selected as wicket-keeper for theRest of the World team, captained byGarfield Sobers, which played five unofficial Tests against England that summer. Engineer also played for theRest of the World cricket team in Australia in 1971–72.[4] He enjoyed life inManchester and, having married a local lady, decided to settle there after his retirement from playing.[4] Lancashire granted him a testimonial in 1976, his final season, which raised £26,519.[13]
He became a vice-president of the club in later years.[4][14][15] On 24 January 2024, at a Naman Awards ceremony, the BCCI announced that the ColonelC. K. Nayudu Lifetime Achievement Award was bestowed on both Engineer and Ravi Shastri.[16][17] His contributions to Lancashire county club were recognised as a stand was inaugurated in his name during the fourth test match of theAnderson–Tendulkar Trophy betweenEngland andIndia.[18]
TheBollywood film83, released in 2021, was about India's firstCricket World Cup in 1983. It depicts Engineer, resident in England at the time, as one of the TV commentators. The film featuresBoman Irani as Engineer and is directed and produced byKabir Khan andAnurag Kashyap respectively.[19][20]
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