Bevan Congdon died today. I remember his two towering sixes in the 1969 Nagpur test (India vs. New Zealand) โ incidentally, the first cricket match that I saw live at the Vidarbha Cricket Association Ground, Nagpur. A connoisseur’s dream, he scored match-winning sixty-plus in the first inning and had no problems reading the variations in flight, loop, spin and subtle changes in pace that Bedi, Prasanna, and Venkataraghvan were feared for. The three Indian spinners teased and tormented the New Zealand batsmen but Bevan was an exceptionโhe knew how to use his feet and attack the spinners.
At the centre of the New Zealand team at a time when it started gaining attention on the international cricket scene, Bevan had retired long before the New Zealand cricketers acquired the black cap. Although he captained very few tests and earned only a solitary win against Australia, he would go down in the history as one, whose batsmanship and captaincy helped put New Zealand on the world cricket map in the 1970s. Rest in peace, Bevan!
