Bishan Singh Bedi Biography

Bishan Singh Bedi is a former Indian cricket player who has served Indian cricket with his slow-spin bowling. Bishan Singh Bedi was born on September 25, 1946 in Amritsar, Punjab, India. With cricket being his forte, Bishan Bedi was renowned in both the international and domestic cricket circuit, being regarded as a true sportsman in all aspects of the game.

The major teams that Bishan Singh Bedi represented are India, Delhi, Northamptonshire and Northern Punjab.

Bishan Singh Bedi was a slow left-arm orthodox spin bowler and a right-hand batsman. Bedi was famous for his graceful bowling style that comprised a smooth run-up and decisive bowling, which combined variations in flight, pace, loop and spin that even hoodwinked some of the most technical players around then. Amongst the most successful and feared leg-spinners in Indian cricketing history, Bishen Singh Bedi along with E.A.S. Prasanna, B.S. Chandrashekhar and Srinivasaraghavan Venkataraghavan constituted the renowned Indian spin quartet, that dominated spin bowling in the 1960’s and 1970’s.

Bishan Singh Bedi made his international Test debut for India against West Indies at Kolkata in December 1967. Since then he has played in 67 Tests, scoring 656 runs and taking 266 wickets, with his best being 7/98. Bishan Singh Bedi had an unsuccessful stint as an Indian national Test cricket captain. He was in the midst of several controversies, including his declaring the second innings of a match at Kingston in 1976, in protest against ‘intimidatory bowling’ by the West Indian bowlers. Bedi made his ODI debut against England at Leeds in July 1974 and since then has played in 10 ODIs taking 7 wickets, as well as participated in the 1975 and 1979 Cricket World Cup. Bishan carried on his brilliant form even at the domestic and first-class level. In the 1974-75 season of the Ranji Trophy, he took a record 64 wickets for Delhi. He also had a dazzling county career where he gracefully exited with a stunning 1560 wickets in first-class cricket, playing for Northamptonshire. Bedi has even coached the Indian cricket team in 1990.

Bishan Singh Bedi’s infinite wisdom and passion for the game, along with his outspoken nature and frank views on modern day cricketing issues, have made him a popular and prominent figure in Indian Cricket.