Mohinder Amarnath was one of the chief architects of India's maiden World Cup win in 1983. The all-rounder rose to the occasion and played a key role with both bat and ball by scoring 237 runs and picking eight wickets. Amarnath starred with a gritty 80 against West Indies in the group stage.
However, he etched his name in the Indian cricketing history with his all-around heroics in the final. Amarnath scored a patient 80-ball 26 in the final and then registered scintillating match figures of 7-0-12-3 to help India win the World Cup. Amarnath accounted for the wickets of Jeff Dujon, Malcolm Marshall and Michael Holding.
Amarnath played 69 Tests, scoring 4378 runs with 11 centuries and 24 fifties. He also accounted 32 Test scalps. In 85 ODIs, Amarnath scored 1924 runs with an unbeaten 102 as his highest.
On 25 June 1983, India under the leadership of legendary all-rounder Kapil Dev scripted history by winning the Prudential World Cup for the maiden time. Lord's was the scene for India's greatest cricketing triumph at the time, as they beat two-time winners West Indies by 43 runs to lift the coveted trophy.
Kapil Dev famously became the first Indian captain to lift the Cricket World Cup as the Indian team basked in glory at the famous Lord's balcony. Their route to the final saw them comfortably make it through Group B with four wins from six, before seeing off hosts England at Old Trafford in the semifinal. India was up against a formidable West Indies in the final - who were on the hunt for a hat-trick of World Cup titles - but was to be shocked by a determined Indian bowling line-up.
Batting first, India were bowled out for a paltry 183 in 54.5 overs, with Kris Srikkanth top-scoring with a 57-ball 38.
Considering the talent in the Windies' ranks, the total looked fairly chaseable. However, fine bowling from India's attack helped skittle their opponents for just 140, thereby sparking wild celebrations at the home of cricket.
Mohinder Amarnath and Madan Lal were the chief architects of the win, taking three wickets apiece as India recorded a historic 43-run victory.
Indian medium-pacer Roger Binny proved his worth in English conditions as he finished the tournament as the leading wicket-taker of the tournament.
Brief Scores
Jun 25 1983, Prudential World Cup Final, India vs West Indies
Result: India won by 43 runs
India 183 all out (K Srikkanth 38, Sandeep Patil 27, Mohinder Amarnath 26, Andy Roberts 3/32, Malcolm Marshall 2/24); West Indies 140 all out (Viv Richards 33, Jeff Dujon 25, Mohinder Amarnath 3/12, Madan Lal 3/31)
