A lifetime of achievements

Salim Durani was presented with the Col. C.K. Nayudu lifetime achievement award for his contribution to Indian cricket. The charismatic all-rounder joined the list of celebrated players who have been bestowed with the honour for their part in the legacy of the sport in the country. The award itself is named after India's first Test captain who was known for his hard-hitting abilities with the bat.

The first recipient of the award was Lala Amarnath in 1994. His role in the formative years of Indian cricket was the primary reason for his name being at the top of all-time Indian cricketers and the eventual award, a prestigious one of many honours received by him.

Syed Mushtaq Ahmad, Captain Vijay Hazare and K.N. Prabhu were given the award in the following three years. While Ahmad was an aggressive Test batsman who hit the first ever Test century by an Indian, it was Hazare who led the Indian team to it's first Test victory ever, against England in 1951-52. Prabhu though became the first journalist and only non-cricketer to be given the award. A journalist, he made a vital contribution to the sport through the years and the honour became a symbolic gesture of appreciation for his works.

The award in 1998 was presented to Pahlan Ratanji "Polly" Umrigar who, by the time he retired in 1962, had played in more Tests (59), scored more Test runs (3,631), and recorded more Test centuries (12), than any other Indian player. The Polly Umrigar award too, was constituted in his memory when he expired in 2006.

Colnel Hemachandra Adhikari, whose association spanning over three decades saw him as both a player as well as coach, was the final cricketer who was given the award in the last millennium.

The award the next year was presented to a cricketer who was called the best leg-spinner by Sir Garfield Sobers. Subhash Gupte truly did bowl his spin with lethal consequences and was honoured with the award in 2000.

The following year, Mansoor Ali Khan Pataudi was named as the recipient of the award for his charismatic batting in his playing days that spanned from 1961 to 1975, despite an accident in his early days that damaged his right eye permanently. Nicknamed and still famous as the Tiger, he was also a right-handed bowler.

Bhausaheb Nimbalkar who scored a mammoth and an unbeaten 443 runs for Mumbai in a Ranji Trophy match was the next on the list of elite cricketers and was felicitated in 2002 for his efforts, followed by spinner Chandrakant Borde  in the following year.

In 2004, a group of spinners who took India to glory around the same time in their careers, were jointly given the award. B.S. Bedi, B. Chandrasekhar, EAS Prasanna and S. Venkataraghvan were and continue to be well-renowned players whose opinion on the field and off it are taken with much reverence.

Injuries can end careers but cannot kill legacies. Nariman Contractor was one such left-handed batsman who was presented the award in 2005 for his brave efforts including an 81 scored despite two broken ribs against England in 1959.

Gundappa Vishwanath and Mohinder Amarnath have been the the award-recipients in the last two years for their exemplary skills with the bat and the ball.