Palwankar Baloo
Palwankar Baloo, was first Dalit be a cricketer (left-arm orthodox spin bowler) and a politician.
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| Personal information | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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| Full name | Palwankar Baloo | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Born | 19 March 1876 Dharwad, Bombay Presidency, British India | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Died | 4 July 1955 (aged 79) Bombay, Bombay State, India | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Bowling | Left-arm orthodox spin | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Role | bowler | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Relations | P Shivram (brother), P Ganpat (brother), P Vithal (brother) | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Domestic team information | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Years | Team | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| 1905–1921 | Hindus | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| First-class debut | 8 February 1906 Hindus v Europeans | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Last First-class | 8 December 1920 Hindus v Parsees | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Career statistics | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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Source: ESPNcricinfo, 27 January 2009 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Early life
Palwankar Baloo was born in Chambhar caste into Dharwad, Bombay Presidency, British. His father was a sepoy in the 112th Infantry Regiment of British Indian Army. Baloo played cricket with equipment left behind by officers stationed in Pune.[1]
Baloo had three brothers, Palwankar Shivram, Vithal Palwankar and Palwankar Ganpat, who later became known cricket players.
Cricket career
He started working as a groundsman maintaining the pitch for the Parsis in Pune and occasionally bowled to J.G Grieg, an English batsman of British Poona Gymkhana. That time he learned to do spin bowling.
In 1896, he moved to Bombay and got selected into Parmanandas Jivandas Hindu Gymkhana and played both Bombay Quadrangular tournaments.[2]
He got a job in the Bombay Berar and Central Indian Railways and also played for its corporate cricket team.
He played in all-Indian team of 'Maharaja of Patiala' to tour England in 1911, the tour was a failure, but Baloo's outstanding performance was well praised.[3]
"Though the career in cricket for Baloo was not equal he face alot of biases due to his caste. During the tea interval in matches, he would be served outside the pavilion in a disposable plate. If he wished to wash his hands and face, a fellow Dalit attendant would bring him water in a corner take lunch off a separate plate, at a separate table".[4]
He is considered as one of the greatest cricketers in cricket history of India.[5]
Politics
- He was greatly influenced from Gandhian ideology and worked to bring Home Rule to India.
- In 1910s, Palwankar Baloo met Dr. B.R. Ambedkar and became his close friend. Both of them admired each other and worked for the upliftment of Dalit community.
- In 1932, Baloo opposed Dr.Ambedkar's demand for Separate Electorates for the Depressed Classes. Later, he also signed the "Rajah-Moonje Pact" in opposition. He commented conversion of Dalits into other religions as 'suicidal' when Ambedkar expressed his views to convert into Buddhism.[6]
- In 1933, Baloo unsuccessfully contested in the Bombay Municipality constituency from Hindu Mahasabha.
- In 1937, Baloo joined Congress and contested in the Bombay Legislative Assembly elections against Dr.B.R. Ambedkar, but lost in elections.[7]
He died in 1955 and funeral was attended by many national leaders as well as cricketers.[8]
See also
References
- "The 'Untouchable' Cricketer Who Challenged the British & His Fellow Countrymen". The Better India. 18 September 2018. Retrieved 3 June 2020.
- "India's first Dalit cricketer Palwankar Baloo fought against caste barriers on the field and off it". Hindustan Times. 16 September 2018. Retrieved 3 June 2020.
- Kidambi, Prashant (30 June 2019). "From disdain to heroes — the journey of two Dalit brothers in India's first cricket team". ThePrint. Retrieved 4 June 2020.
- Jyoti, Dhrubo (16 September 2018). "Why India has forgotten its first Dalit cricketer". ThePrint. Retrieved 3 June 2020.
- "Palwankar Baloo, the Dalit bowler, was the "first great Indian cricketer"". Retrieved 4 June 2020.
- "Yahoo Cricket". cricket.yahoo.net. Retrieved 4 June 2020.
- Menon, Dilip M. (2006). Cultural History of Modern India. Berghahn Books. ISBN 978-81-87358-25-1.
- Kidambi, Prashant (2019), Cricket Country: An Indian Odyssey in the Age of Empire, Oxford University Press, ISBN 978-01-98843-13-9
- Guha, Ramachandra (2003), A Corner of a Foreign Field: The Indian History of a British Sport, Pan Macmillan, ISBN 0-330-49117-2
- Guha, Ramachandra (2006), Menon, Dilip M. (ed.), Cultural History of Modern India, Berghahn Books, pp. 1–31, ISBN 978-81-87358-25-1
Further reading
- Guha, Ramachandra (2005). ""The Moral That Can Be Safely Drawn From The Hindus' Magnificent Victory": Cricket, Caste and the Palwankar Brothers". In Mills, James H. (ed.). Subaltern Sports: Politics and Sport in South Asia. Anthem Press. ISBN 978-1-84331-168-3.