The term ‘Mankad’ was first invented by Australian cricket fans when on the 1948 Australia tour, the iconic Indian cricketer Vinoo Mankad ran out Bill Brown at the non-striker’s end. An aggravated Mankad, annoyed by the sight of the batter constantly wandering around the crease even before the ball was bowled, took the bails off and ran him out. From then on, the name for this unconventional decision stood the test of time before it was objected upon.
The Mankad debate was reignited once again and it is making headlines in the world of cricket ever since Australia cricketer Adam Zampa attempted it during a Big Bash League 2022-23 game. Over the past week, demands to rename the tactic have erupted throughout Australia and the cricketing community.
Zampa tried to run out one of the Renegades’ batter; to be precise, he tried to Mankad him and the whole cricketing world started to lose their mind. In fact, even more so when the umpire ruled him not out as he was too late to remove the bails.
I feel it to be a great honour: Vinoo Mankad’s grandson
Mankad’s grandson Harsh Mankad came forward and finally broke the silence on the matter and stated that he is delighted for his grandfather’s name to be kept alive and he hopes that he has urged people to not speak for them.
“Personally, I’m always delighted to see my grandfather being remembered. I feel it to be a great honour for our name to be associated with a cricketing term. I’d love to see the “Mankad” or “Mankading” stay and keep alive his memories and legacy as a great competitor and sportsman deeply respected and admired by everyone I’ve met and those who knew him and experienced life with him,” he said.
To show respect for the Mankad family, leading administrators Todd Greenberg of the Australian Cricketers Association and Lee Germon of Cricket NSW have made an effort to launch a campaign this week to separate the deed from the name.
