XtraTime Web Desk: He comes across as a gritty and gutsy character who has a never say die attitude towards life. Former India cricketer and currently the Bengal coach Arun Lal is a fighter in the truest sense. Having won the battle against a rare jaw cancer, Arun Lal knows what it takes to overcome the obstacles in life.
The former India cricketer was diagnosed with adenoid cystic carcinoma, a rare type of salivary glands cancer in 2016. He had to undergo a 14 hour surgery at the Tata Medical Centre in Kolkata for a jaw reconstruction. Those were real tough times and it required a lot of courage. And talking about courage, Arun Lal had in abundance having taken on the fearsome West Indian fast bowlers.
The 64 year old coach has been successful in instilling the fighting spirit among the Bengal cricketers as they made it to the final of the Ranji Trophy last season before losing out to Sourashtra. He has turned out to be the renaissance man of Bengal cricket, bringing back the winning mentality in the Bengal dressing room.
Born in a cricketing family (father Dhir Jagdish Lal was an opening batsman at first-class level) Arun Lal followed the footsteps of his father by becoming an opener. He played Ranji Trophy for Delhi and Bengal. But it was his stint with Bengal which was more productive. It was due to his effort Bengal lifted the Ranji Trophy for the second time in 1989-90.
Arun Lal did not get a fair share of opportunities in international cricket, considering his magnanimous achievements in domestic cricket. He played only 16 test matches for India over six years. One still remembers the two half centuries (52 and 70) he scored against Pakistan in the test match at Eden Gardens in 1987. He replaced Sunil Gavaskar as the little master opted out of the test match. Despite his brilliant display he was unceremoniously dropped form the next test match. In the following season against the West Indies he scored three fifties across formats, including the career best 93 at Eden Gardens. But was again conspicuously kept out of the playing XI by former India captain Mohammad Azharuddin.
Arun Lal also played a key role in former India captain Sourav Ganguly’s career. He convinced the Bengal selectors to include him in the playing XI for the Ranji Trophy final against Delhi in 1989-90. Having watched Sourav grow as a cricketer, Arun Lal always had the confidence in him. Sourav showed enough promise during his 22 run innings in the final. Rest as we all know, he went on to become one of the finest cricketers of the country. It was befitting when Arun Lal was made the coach of Bengal for 2019-20 seasons by Sourav, who was the President of Cricket Association of Bengal. He was also posthumously awarded the Life Time Achievement award by CAB.
As they say fighters may be destroyed, but never defeated. Then there are characters like Arun Lal who overcome both destruction and defeat, ensuring their fight prevails over the hazards of life.