Nana Joshi

Throughout nearly all of the '50s, `Nana' Joshi and Naren Tamhane battled it out for the stumper's slot in the Indian team. A flashy wicketkeeper, Joshi on his day could be brilliant but also had lapses of form. On his debut against against England in 1951-52 he had two catches and two stumpings in the first innings, which was to remain his best performance in a Test. He toured West Indies in 1953 and England in 1959. At home he played against England in 1951-52, Pakistan in 1952-53 and 1960-61, West Indies in 1958-59 and Australia in 1959-60. A useful late order batsman who frequently opened the batting for his state, Joshi and Ramakant Desai put on 149 runs for the ninth wicket against Pakistan in 1960-61, still the Indian record for that wicket. Joshi's score was 52 not out. Interestingly enough, this was his last Test. In a first class career spanning almost two decades, Joshi had 180 dismissals, 119 of them caught. He captained Maharashtra for several years.
Partab Ramchand October 2004