David Houghton was the Zimbabwe wicket-keeper on that eventful day at Tunbridge Wells 20 years ago when Kapil Dev walked in with the scoreboard reading 17 for 5 and his team facing ignominious defeat to a team playing its first World Cup.
India were not exactly tournament favourites, even though they had beaten the West Indies in a one-day game in the Windies before reaching England for the third edition of the Prudential World Cup. But 17 for 5
against Zimbabwe was something the Indian fans could never have imagined.
What they could never have imagined too was the swashbuckling knock Kapil Dev went on to play, knocking the stuffing out of the Zimbabweans and ensuring that India not only won that game, but gained
the momentum that eventually took them through to the final and victory.
It was at that point that Kapil Dev came in at number seven, eventually scoring 175 not out and helping India to win by 31 runs. From then on, it was a succession of victories, first against Australia, then England
and, lastly, the triumphant final against the West Indies.
Recalling the match, Houghton, who later went on to be Zimbabwe captain, told rediff.com, "At one stage they [India] were 17 for 5 and that’s when Kapil came in at about seven. Then they were 40 for 6
and 70 for 7; they were in deep, deep trouble.
"The wicket was a bit dirty, there was a bit of moisture, and we were playing really well. We had managed to find the edge a few times.
"Basically, Kapil came in and played pretty well. He didn't play anything he didn't have to, he was wearing our bowlers out, and we were in a quandary about whether to keep the same bowlers on.
"Even at lunchtime we had bowled 40 overs and they were 100 for 7, but we didn't take Kapil into account, he played everything in the centre, he never missed a ball."
Commenting on Kapil Dev's interaction with both the Zimbabwean pace and spin bowlers, Houghton recalled that Kapil had been particularly hard on offspinner John Traicos (another later Zimbabwe captain).
"Traicos was our most experienced player," Houghton said. “Kapil gave him a bit of a smack, hitting him over the head to cover."
Observing that it was a "quite a close game," Houghton said the only parallel he can think of is Viv Richards’ 189 against England at Old Trafford.
