Sunil Gavaskar is one of the best opening batsmen to have played for India. "Sunny" as he is affectionately known is rated among one of the topmost players of international cricket. His debut match in 1971 was a sensational affair as he went on to makes an astounding total of 774, a Herculean task against the then powerful West Indies. From thereon there was no looking back for Sunil Gavaskar, and he went on to become the lynchpin of Indian batting right until his retirement from the game in 1971. Gavaskar went on to break and create a number of records during the entire course of his glorious reign.

Sunil Gavaskar surpassed the long-standing record of 29 Test centuries held by none other that Sir Donald Bradman. Gavaskar went on to score 34 Test centuries before Sachin Tendulkar broke his record. Furthermore, Gavaskar became the first to cross the 10,000 runs barrier in Test cricket. Gavaskar also contributed immensely to the side via his sharp slip fielding. He in fact was the first non-wicket keeper to snare more that hundred catches in Tests. He has also been the skipper of the Indian cricket team at various stages in the late seventies and early eighties.

Early Life of Sunil Gavaskar
Sunil Gavaskar has had a strong background in cricket since his childhood. He is the nephew of the former Indian test cricketer Madhav Mantri. With the cricket influences within the family, his interest in cricket began from his school days. In fact he was such an accomplished player even back then that he was named India`s Best Schoolboy Cricketer of the Year` in 1966. He played great cricket all the way through school and college and went on to graduate through university and trophy cricket. An interesting story surrounding Gavaskar`s birth is that of when he was switched at birth. Luckily, this fact was noticed by an eagle-eyed uncle and the crisis averted. He made his first-class debut for Vazir Sultan Colts XI against an XI from Dungarpur, in 1966/67, but remained in Mumbai`s Ranji Trophy squad for two further years without playing a match. He made his debut in the 1968/69 season against Karnataka, but made a duck. He made a comeback with 114 against Rajasthan in his second match, and two further consecutive centuries saw him selected in the 1970/71 Indian team to tour the West Indies.

International Cricket Career of Sunil Gavaskar
The international cricket career of Gavaskar boasts a most impressive record. He started his international career with a bang, and a smashing performance against the West Indies in 1971, plummeted him to the ranks of the top international players. This was followed by a couple of matches against England in 1971-72 and 73. The 1974-75 test series marked the beginning of a record streak of 106 test appearances by Gavaskar. The match in New Zealand and West Indies saw him assume leadership of the Indian team for the first time, which he subsequently led to victory. Gavaskar`s international graph displays a number of impressive performances including the ones in West Indies in 1974, New Zealand and England in 1976, Australia in 1977-78, the historic series with Pakistan in 1978-79 and Australia again in 1985-86. Gavaskar`s final season in test cricket came in 1986-87, when India faced a long series of eleven home tests. As regards his ODI career, Sunil Gavaskar almost went through his career without scoring a one-day century. He managed his first (and only ODI century) in the 1987 World Cup, when he hit 103 not out against New Zealand in his second-last ODI innings at Vidarbha C A Ground, Nagpur. The International cricket career of Sunil Gavaskar forms quite an expansive list. He has performed in a record number of test matches- an unprecedented 106 test matches- making him the first Indian cricketer to do so.

Cricket Debut of Sunil Gavaskar
The cricket debut of Gavaskar was a most impressive one. He began his cricket career with a dream performance at West Indies in 1971, and went on to acquire more runs, more hundreds and more appearances than anyone else in Test history until he retired. Though he was kept out of the first test at Kingston due to a hand injury, he entered the second test with a smashing performance. He established a new record of the highest aggregate in a maiden series, beating 703 set by George Headley, the `Black Bradman`, against England in 1929-30. He was the first Indian to achieve an aggregate of more than 700 runs in a series, and this 774 runs at 154.80 remains the most runs scored in a debut series by any batsman. His superb performance made him the first player after Doug Walters to score a century and double century in the same match. He also became the first Indian to make four centuries in one Test series, the second Indian after Vijay Hazare to score two centuries in the same Test, and the third after Vijay Hazare and Polly Umrigar to score centuries in three consecutive innings.

Sunil Gavaskar in the India-Pakistan match, 1978-79
In the India-Pakistan test match in 1978-79, Sunil Gavaskar put up a memorable performance. He is well known for having made two centuries in one test. Though India was defeated in the series, the tour ended in personal glory for Gavaskar. He scored 447 runs in three Tests at an average of 89.40. In the first drawn Test at Faislabad, he scored 89 and 8 not out. In the remaining two at Lahore and Karachi, both of which India lost he scored 5 and 97 and 111 and 137. This was the second time he had scored two centuries in one Test. Only Herbert Sutcliffe (England) and Clyde Walcott (West Indies) had achieved this distinction earlier. The Pakistan test-series saw the further rise of Gavaskar, who was setting up his own record and coming into the forefront of Indian cricket.

Batting and Fielding Averages

	Mat	Inns	NO	Runs	HS	Ave	BF	SR	100	50	6s	Ct	St
Tests	125	214	16	10122	236*	51.12			34	45	26	108	0
ODIs	108	102	14	3092	103*	35.13	4966	62.26	1	27		22	0
First-class	348	563	61	25834	340	51.46			81	105		293	0
List A	151	144	17	4594	123	36.17			5	37		37	0

Bowling Averages

	Mat	Inns	Balls	Runs	Wkts	BBI	BBM	Ave	Econ	SR	4w	5w	10
Tests	125	29	380	206	1	1/34	1/34	206.00	3.25	380.0	0	0	0
ODIs	108	4	20	25	1	1/10	1/10	25.00	7.50	20.0	0	0	0
First-class	348		1987	1240	22	3/43		56.36	3.74	90.3		0	0
List A	151		108	81	2	1/10	1/10	40.50	4.50	54.0	0	0	0

Sunil Gavaskar as Captain
Sunil Gavaskar has been made the captain of the Indian team on various occasions, in the late 1970`s and early 1980`s. Though his record as a captain is not as impressive as his personal career graph as a player, he has led India to victory on different occasions. He captained India to nine victories and eight losses, but most of the games were drawn. The very first time that Gavaskar had any experience of captaining the team was in the series against New Zealand (1975-76), when following an injury Bishen Singh Bedi was unable to assume leadership of the team. Gavaskar as the vice-captain stepped up to lead the team. He was officially appointed captain for the West Indies tour of India in 1978. Following this, his captaincy traveled a roller-coaster route as he was appointed and dismissed from the position a number of times.

Sunil Gavaskar as Cricket Commentator/Columnist
Gavaskar put up a most successful stint as cricket commentator after retiring from world cricket. A widely read columnist, he went on to become one of the most celebrated and sought-after TV commentators in the world. He is articulate, to the point and precise in his commentary style. A judicious analysis and realistic assessment make his commentary a good listen. Moreover, his speech is not marred by an English or Australian accent as was the norm with most others. Thus Gavaskar`s post-retirement role as a commentator proved to be a most successful one.

Gavaskar though now retired from the game, continues to play a significant role in advising and managing affairs of the cricketing fraternity in India and as a commentator and ICC official.

Sunil was writes cricket related column for various leading newspapers, and appears in new channels as expert analyst.

Achievements of Sunil Gavaskar
The achievements of Sunil Gavaskar in the world of cricket form an impressive list of records and achievements in the world of international cricket. His meteoric rise to cricket stardom is an often told success story. He is most acclaimed for the number of records that he broke and created in the world of test cricket. He was the first to make the maximum number of runs and centuries. Also, he was the first cricketer to cross the 10000 run mark. Gavaskar still holds the record for the highest number of test centuries-34.There are a number of records that Gavaskar has to his name all of which have been achieved on the basis of his inborn talen5t and natural batting skills. If Gavaskar has earned a considerable amount by compiling 10,000 runs and 34 centuries, he has earned even more through television, radio, modelling, journalism and other multifarious activities. Gavaskar also has a number of Awards to his name, including the prestigious Padma Bhushan Award, given in recognition of his sportsmanship.

Personal Life of Sunil Gavaskar
The cricket teams that Sunil Gavaskar has represented in his entire cricketing career apart from India are- Mumbai and Somerset. Sunil Gavaskar is married to Marshaneil Gavaskar and has a son, Rohan Sunil Gavaskar, who is also a domestic cricket player.