My Hands Itch to Play: Vinod Kambli After Watching MI vs KKR in IPL

He is a classic example of talent going astray due to poor habits. Now 44 and often in the news for the wrong reasons, Vinod Kambli is perhaps regretting that his international career could have charted a better course only if he had handled his life better.

Kambli's flashy strokeplay made him one of India's most gifted left-handed batsmen in the early Nineties. He was 17 when Kambli and Sachin Tendulkar stitched together a world record 664-run undefeated partnership for their school Shardashram Vidyamandir. But then life went different ways for the two talented cricketers from Mumbai.

Kambli turned up with his son at Wankhede Stadium on Thursday night to watch Mumbai Indians play Kolkata Knight Riders in an Indian Premier League match. When Gautam Gambhir was playing those sizzling drives for his 45-ball 59, Kambli's hands must have itched.

I know that's what I was discussing with Dilip Vengsarkar he said I would have enjoyed playing.My hands still itches https://t.co/SxZDUC3NpX

- VINOD KAMBLI (@vinodkambli349) April 29, 2016

The left-handed Kambli was known for his flamboyance even in the longest format of the game. He made his Test debut three years after Tendulkar did but made an impact that no one did.

In his first seven Test matches, Kambli smashed four centuries, two of them double hundreds. Kambli once bludgeoned Shane Warne for 22 runs in an over. His dazzling footwork made him a limited over specialist. Kambli played 104 ODIs, scoring two hundreds and 14 fifties. He never played a T20 international.

#IPL2016 #MIvKKR .Really enjoyed ourselves at my Wankhede Stadium. Met the legend Dilip Vengsarkar n Manali?? pic.twitter.com/ELmsFMIgwe

- VINOD KAMBLI (@vinodkambli349) April 28, 2016

In spite of a sensational start to his Test career, Kambli played all of 17 Tests and it was all over in just two years. He was not even 24 when he played his last Test in 1995, having made his debut in Kolkata against England in January 1993.

Kambli announced his retirement from cricket in 2011, almost a decade after he last played for India. Indiscipline cost him his place in the national squad. His relationship with once best friend Tendulkar also soured. Kambli often got caught in emotional public outbursts against Tendulkar.