Of South Africa's run outs and a famous Mankad one!

Rahul Mankad at the Oval in London yesterday. Pic/Anand Vasu

On a day when South Africa gave the Champions Trophy a tragicomic run out, and two others that AB de Villiers couldn't explain in any manner, there was a die-hard cricket lover in the stands fielding questions about a different kind of dismissal of the same mode.

Rahul Mankad, the former Mumbai cricketer and only living son of the legendary Vinoo Mankad, did not quite get irritated when asked about his father running out Bill Brown in the Sydney Test against Australia 1947-48, but it was clearly not the only thing he wanted to talk about. "It doesn't bug me, but what does is how ill-informed people are. I'm not running away from it, my father never ran away from it. It's just awkward for me to have to explain this to people, who are lovers of the game, simply because they don't have a better sense of the history of the game."

Mankad Jr drew attention to the fact that the rule regarding the dismissal has always been in place. "It is a legitimate mode of dismissal. The fortunate or unfortunate part is that my father did it. People have failed to understand the circumstances and the background. It started in the match against Queensland where Brown was warned several times," said Mankad.

"That was the precursor to the dismissal in the Test. The Australians never made a song and dance about it. They felt that Brown got what he deserved and Brown agreed. There was no ill-feeling, animosity or regret from either side. The only regret was from my father, who felt he had been put in a position where he had to do it. Sunil Gavaskar rightly said that the dismissal should be called Browned rather than Mankaded, but I guess the Australian press went for the catchier name, which is fair enough."

The fact that some people still attach a stigma to the form of dismissal did not sit well. "People like Geoff Boycott have told me that if his son of effected such a dismissal, he would be disowned," said Mankad.

"He obviously didn't have the facts. And he obviously has a selective sense of propriety or ethics or spirit of the game. That is hurtful and uncalled for."