Wisden Obituary
Nayudu, Cottari Subbanna, died in Indore on November 22, 2002, aged 88, after protracted respiratory and heart problems. His older brother, CK, was India's first Test captain and such was his renown and longevity as an allrounder that CS had to live in his shadow even though 18 years separated them. For all that, CS enjoyed a long and distinguished Ranji Trophy career between 1931-32 and 1961-62, in which time he played for Central Provinces and Berar, Central India, Baroda and Holkar before captaining Bengal and the three Pradeshes, Andhra, Uttar and Madhya. In 56 Trophy games he took 295 wickets at 23.49 bowling leg-breaks and googlies - an average of five a match - and scored 2,575 runs at 30.20. In 1942-43 he became the first to take 40 wickets in a Ranji Trophy season, in just four games for Baroda, while in the 1944-45 final, playing now for his brother's Holkar team against Bombay, he delivered a world-record 917 balls in the match. Figures of 6 for 153 and 5 for 275 brought another world record, for the most runs conceded in a match. His best figures were 8 for 93 in a 13-wicket haul for Baroda against Nawanagar in 1939-40, while his four hundreds included a highest of 127 for them against Rajputana in 1942-43.

It was very different at Test level, where only three of his 11 appearances came at home. The others were in England, in 1936 and 1946, and in Australia in 1947-48, where in four Tests he went without a wicket and scored just 18 runs. His 1936 teammate, Cota Ramaswami, identified his problem: "C. S. bent his body so low while delivering the ball that his head was almost on a level with the top of the stumps. He stretched his arm fully and threw his body weight into his delivery so that the ball came off the pitch very quickly. He also spun the ball extremely well but unfortunately his length and direction were not always controlled." His two Test wickets cost 359 runs while his hard-hitting batting was scarcely more successful, producing 147 runs at 9.18. Yet his future had looked so bright when, making his Test debut at 19, he hit 36 and then a prolonged 15 to help India stave off defeat by England at Calcutta.
Wisden Cricketers' Almanack

• Tale of the tail (Aug 4, 2007)
  
• Compton, Ranji and the missing rupees (Jul 8, 2006)
  
• CS Nayudu - Workaholic extraordinaire (Nov 23, 2002)
  
• CS Nayudu passes away (Nov 22, 2002)

The 1946 Indian touring squad © Wisden

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