Reminiscence: Dipankar Deb shares unforgettable cricket moments with Dr. Himabrata Das

April 26: “No nervous 90s. Luckily I got a delivery on my pads and glanced it down to fine-leg”, recalls DD talking about the single that took him to 100* at the iconic India Club ground in the match of his lifetime.The year was 2000 and two youngsters were scripting history in the First Division League. Gulrej Ali and Dipankar Deb playing for India Club would amass a mammoth 237 runs for the opening partnership leaving the opposition bowlers panting and hapless. “I was batting on 70 odd when Gulrej told me that I deserved a hundred. I batted sensibly picking up singles and twos. I got stumped on 107 trying to charge an off-spinner. Gulrej reached the landmark 2 overs before me and finished on 117. The reason I think that innings was special Himu was because my belated father was watching me bat. What can be a prouder moment for a son”, he tells me getting a touch emotional.

One of the most colourful characters in the stadium, Dipankar “DD” Deb delights with his infectious positive energy. Always smiling and looking at the lighter side of the game, DD strikes you as one of the game’s true romantics and an impeccable story teller. Hailing from Shillongpatty, one of the cricketing strongholds of Silchar meant that DD would spend his childhood playing cricket at both the Chottelal Seth School ground and also the Hindi school ground with his mates Tathagata, Himadri, Bikram, Sabbir, Arijit, Abhijit, Partha and Surojit among others all of whom went on to serve Silchar cricket for many years to come. It was in those formative years that he got to play with the legends of Silchar cricket at the time notably Mehboob Alam, Inteqab Alam, Niranjan Das, Alok Sarkar.

The year was 1994 and DSA Silchar had invited NIS Coach Pradeep Ingle to conduct a camp aimed at scouting young cricketing talent. DD along with many of his friends got noticed in the camp and that was the beginning of a remarkable career spanning U-16, U-19 with lighthearted moments with his long-time roommate Bikram and the coveted NurUddin Trophy Senior Inter-District Tournament where he opened the batting with another pillar of Silchar cricket Bijendra Prasad “Badshah” Singh. His coaching continued under Sujit Nandi and Sujoy Dutta Roy at DSA after which he joined Silchar Cricket Coaching Centre and honed his skills under the towering Dhiraj Das and Abani Hazarika.

DD picks out the fighting 47 that he scored in a losing cause against NF Railway at Nalbari in the U-19 JK Baruah Trophy Semifinal of ’99 as one of his most gritty knocks. It was this tournament that saw the emergence of Prakash Bhagat as a deadly left-arm spinner who picked up 7 wickets in the quarterfinal. He also reminisces playing in the ONGC Cup in Jorhat, his colleagues being Niharendu and Manab. DD talks about his fond memories of playing with Abhishek Chakraborty, Mihir Barman, Monirup Sinha, Mosarob and Raihan-all of whom he rates very highly. The outstanding Aniruddha Laskar was his ‘parar’ icon growing up and DD acknowledges the contribution of the affable Subhasish “Bibhuda” Choudhury who was his U-16 coach.Getting selected for the Senior District team was a special moment for DD where he benefited from the guidance of the great Amal Das. He was also part of the India Club team that played against the Sylhet team that toured Silchar in the 98-99 season.

But the most shining moment in his glorious career was meeting the legendary Kapil Dev who had come to Kumbha during the 97-98 season. “Imagine my joy Himu when Kapil Dev asked me for my bat. He hit the ball out of the park for a six. We had to find another ball. The finest moment for me and Tatha”.

“One of my best friends both on and off the field is Himadri. We had a fantastic time opening the batting during our U-16 days. That partnership is still unbeaten as we still remain close friends to this day”, signs off DD. Truly amazing things can happen when friends play together. Like when the golden boys from Adhar Chand lifted the school tournament till this day when they all give their everything in the Veterans’ Cricket Tournament that unfortunately could not be held this year.

More amazing things will certainly happen to Dipankar Deb who shoulders the responsibility of Assistant Secretary, Cricket Branch, DSA and is the Assistant Treasurer of Silchar Veteran Cricketers Club and is doing a great deal of social service along with his cricketer friends during this ongoing COVID-19 pandemic.

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**Dr. Himabrata Das, Registrar, Department of Psychiatry, Tezpur Medical College & Hospital (TMCH). Apart from this, he is a vivid lover of sports, an eloquent commentator and a columnist.