The year is 1976. Bishan Singh Bedi was leading India for a four-match test series against the West Indies. The third test saw India decimating the hosts as they completed a record fourth innings chase of 406, riding on centuries from Gundappa Vishwanath and Sunil Gavaskar. Michael Holding was infuriated and would not have any of it.
The decider at Kingston marked the return of an all pace attack by the West Indies, deploying intimidating short-pitched bowling at the body of the Indian batters, even as the umpires stood still like a rock. The furious Bedi surrendered the test in protest. He felt that the hosts’ tactics were against the spirit of the game. This was the beginning of the many anti-authoritative and principled stands taken by Bedi, also the reason behind the infamous ‘Vaseline Affair’.
Later that year, the Tony Greig-led English side toured India and were scheduled to play five tests across the country. The first match in Delhi marked the Test debut for the 27-year-old Essex bowler John Lever. He didn’t have the faintest idea of what the series had in store for him. Lever started off majestically, picking up 7 for 46 and 3 for 24 in first and second innings respectively. England were proving to be a tough proposition for the hosts as they cruised to easy victories in the first two tests.
The action moved to Madras. On a surface which Wisden termed as "one of the fastest produced in India for years", Indian bowlers were treated with disdain as England piled up 262 in the first innings. The left-arm medium fast bowler ferociously swung the ball and picked up 5 for 59, as India collapsed for a meagre 164.
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But something strange caught the attention of the umpires before the Indian innings came to a close. Judah Reuben found a sticky gauze strip lying on the bowler’s run up. He discussed it with his fellow umpire, MS Sivasankariah and then brought it to the notice of respective captains.
Greig clarified that those were Vaseline strips, used by bowlers to prevent sweat from entering into their eyes. The weather in Madras is known to be extremely hot and humid, comparable to a furnace. Willis and Lever were advised by the English team physio to stick Vaseline-impregnated gauzes on the forehead to avoid the trouble. But the strips kept slipping down. Also, sweat mixed with Vaseline made it difficult for the duo to grip the ball and hence they discarded the strips, which were then found by the umpire.
The umpires accused Lever of ball-tampering - the first of the many instances in international cricket. Bedi was quick in calling out Lever and Willis for “stooping so low”. He went so far ahead to remark that the ball was tampered with even in the Delhi Test, which was the reason for Lever’s excess swing. The umpires informed the BCCI and the match ball along with the gauze strip were sent for forensic analysis. In no time, the incident had taken the form of a major scandal.
The results affirmed the presence of Vaseline on the strips and also on the ball. The news spread like wildfire and the crowd at the stadium raised slogans in protest. Tony Greig, on the other hand, stood his ground that the act was not deliberate and criticized Bedi stating that “his disappointments in this series have clouded his judgement."
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The BCCI failed to come to a conclusion and referred the matter to the MCC in London, who accepted the reasoning given by Greig and the English team physio and put the controversy to rest. To add salt on the wounds, India lost that particular Test. Though the hosts managed to win the fourth test at Chinnaswamy and draw the final Test in Mumbai, the horrendous 3-1 crushing could not be avoided. Lever had a remarkable tour as he picked up 26 wickets at an average of 14.61 and strike rate of 34.5.
The aftermath of the controversy was not pleasant for the Indian skipper. The incident drew diverse opinions worldwide, some even calling out Bedi for using the incident as a cover-up for his poor performances. Bedi criticized the BCCI for not supporting him enough and faced repercussions for the same.
His long standing association with the English county Northamptonshire, for whom he was a devoted performer for six years, abruptly came to an end when his county contract was unceremoniously terminated. But Bedi stood his ground, which later went on to define his personality as someone who put the game ahead of everything.
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