Roger Binny

Some Lesser Known Facts About Roger Binny

• Roger Binny is a former Indian cricketer and the first Anglo-Indian to play for India when the spin quartet Prasanna, Venkataraghavan, Chandrasekhar, and Bishen Singh Bedi were dominating the world cricket. He was also a finisher coming down the order to rescue his side under critical situations in both Tests and ODIs.

• He is one of the most underrated cricketers to play for India but his stats doesn’t show too much. However, his ability to swing the ball both ways and digging down the order saving his team from pressure situations itself shows his all-around capability. He is also regarded as one of the finest fielders of Indian cricket.

• He represented his school in football and hockey and held the national record in the Javelin throw.

• He made his first-class debut at the age of 20 against Kerala at Raichur. Though he didn’t contribute much in that match but in the next season, he was excellent with both bat and ball, when he opened the batting against Maharashtra, slamming 71 runs and dismissing 4 top-order batsmen. His fine form continued in the next season in which he scored 563 runs including 174 runs vs Andhra at home. Unfortunately, his bowling performance was yet to click.

  

• His highest score of 211 not out in first-class cricket came early in his career against Kerala when he alongside wicket-keeper Sanjay Desai had put on 451 runs for an opening stand as Karnataka declared without losing a wicket. It was a record that time until Ravi Sehgal and Raman Lamba broke it in 1994-95.

• In 1979, he made a decent Test debut in which he scored 46 runs, taking India’s score to 411 runs against Pakistan. However, his bowling performance wasn’t impressive in that match. He bowled ten expensive overs in Pakistan’s 431 for 9.

• The next match against the same side at Kotla in Delhi saw a decent improvement in his performance, scalping 2 for 32 and 2 for 56. He took important wickets of Imran Khan and Zaheer Abbas in that match.

• His ODI debut was also good against Australia in Benson & Hedges World Series Cup 1980. While defending a total of 208, Aussies were all out for 142 runs; Binny finished with 2 for 23. In the next match, he opened the batting for India and also took 4 wickets for 41 runs.

• He had a significant contribution in the 1983 World Cup, scalping 18 wickets with an impressive strike rate of 29.3. His spell of 4 for 29 against Australia played a crucial role in taking India to the Semis. In an interview, he recalled the final match memories of the 1983 World Cup. He said,
  

  After we were bowled out for 183, we knew we had messed it up. The mood was poor in the dressing room and we had a long lunch break and that meant we had more time to brood. But just before we left, Kapil made a speech. He said, ‘The match is not over yet and if we can be bowled out for 183 we should try and bowl them out for less.’ That fired us up.”

  

• He took an important wicket of West Indian skipper Clive Lloyd and scored 21 runs in World Cup 1983 finals and paved the way towards history. In his interview, he revealed that
  

  “Lloyd had suffered an injury in the previous over, and Kapil came to me and said, ‘He is stuck in the crease and cannot move, just bowl a little away and force him to drive.’ I did precisely that and Lloyd was gone.”

• During the league stages of the 1983 World Cup, he dismissed Jeff Dujon, Clive Lloyd, and Viv Richards, helping West Indies to face its maiden defeat in the World Cups. Later he took 3 for 27 against Zimbabwe at Grace Road and India won that match. Though, India couldn’t carry that form forward as they lost against Australia and then West Indies. But Binny’s contribution in both the match was satisfactory.

• India came back strongly against Australia defending 247 runs. It was a do-or-die game to reach the semis. Australia was 46 for one when Kapil handed the ball to Binny in the 16th over. Binny took three quick wickets including their key batter and stand-in skipper David Hookes. He finished with 4 for 29 runs and defeated Australia by 118 runs. Binny was adjudged Man of the Match in that game.

  

• He played a supporting role with Kapil Dev against Zimbabwe when the duo had put on 60 runs crucial partnership for the 6th wicket in World Cup 1983. Kapil Dev’s 175 runs wouldn’t have been possible without him. Binny recalls that memory in an interview by saying
  

  What I remember most clearly was that I had no time to relax at all that time! Normally, after we finished training and the first two batsmen went on, I would go to the canteen, pick up a tea or coffee and watch the first few overs, relaxing and sipping whatever beverage it was. But on that day, I barely picked up my tea and came back, to find that we were already two down! I actually had my training clothes on at the time. As I ran to change, the third wicket fell. Before I could get my pads on, the fourth had fallen! We were nine for four, and then 16 for five when I walked on. I was batter number 7. My mind was a blank: I had not planned anything and had no strategies chalked out. Kapil Dev was still there when I went on. I still remember the first words he told me: ‘Just stay around!

• His first performance with the bat came against Pakistan at Chinnaswamy in September 1983, where India was at one stage 83 for 6 when Binny came out to bat and scored 83 runs not out. He added 155 runs partnership with Madan Lal for the seventh wicket which was a record at that time.

  

• The real test of his game came against mighty West Indies in 1983-84 when he removed Gordon Greenidge, Desmond Haynes & Viv Richards and ended with 3 for 18 in 6 overs of his spell. He also displayed his fighting spirit against the most lethal bowling side of that era by scoring 39 at Green Park, 52 and 32 at Kotla and 65 at Wankhede, and 44 at Eden Gardens.

• Binny once again proved his worth during the World Series Cup of 1985-86 on a bouncy Australian wicket and emerged as a hero for India. He took 4 for 35 in the opening match followed by 1 for 33 against England, 3 for 27 against Australia, and 1 for 28 against New Zealand in the semis. However, he missed the final game due to an injury. He finished as the second-highest wicket-taker behind Laxman Sivaramakrishnan and second-best bowling average after Joel Garner in that series.

• His best bowling performance came against England in Headingley in 1986 when he bought them under backfoot with its brilliant seven wickets. India won that match convincingly by 279 runs.

• Other than that, his six wickets in the first innings against Pakistan at Eden Gardens in 1986 earned him his only Player of the Match title in Tests.

• Later in the 1986 tour of England, he was impressive with 4 wickets at Lords and 5 for 40 at Leeds with an important wicket of great Mike Gatting and Allan Lamb. He also scored 40 runs against England at Edgbaston in the third test.

  

• He took his career’s best 6 for 56 against Pakistan at Eden Gardens in 1987. But surprisingly, despite that performance, he only bowled three more overs in his test career. Due to an ankle injury, he missed the fourth Test at Motera.

• He was picked for the 1987 World Cup squad. He didn’t perform as per his calibre though he dismissed Allan Border clean bowled.

• Considering that performance, the selectors preferred Manoj Prabhakar and Chetan Sharma ahead of him to assist Kapil Dev in fast bowling. Thus, ending his glorious international career. However, he continued to play domestic cricket until 1992.

• He coached the Indian Under-19 team that won the World Cup in 2000 under the captaincy of Mohammad Kaif. It was during this series that Yuvraj Singh came into the limelight.

  

• Later, he became the coach of Bengal in a Ranji Trophy in 2009. In 2012, he was the national selector of Indian cricket. In October 2019, he became the President of the Karnataka State Cricket Association (KSCA).

  

• His son is also a right-handed fast-bowling all-rounder. Roger is known for his performance at the top order, while Stuart is known for his batting at the middle order. He holds the record for best bowling figures for India in ODIs scalping 6 for 4 against Bangladesh in 2014.

• It is said that Roger Binny’s ancestors are from England.

• on 4 June 2021, a Bollywood movie was made which was based on the 1983 cricket World Cup. Actor Nishant Dahiya is playing the role of Roger Binny.

• On 18 October 2022, he replaced Sourav Ganguly as the chief of the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI). He retired from the post on 19 July 2025.

Roger Binny dismissing Clive Lloyd