He had technical limitations but these lapses were covered by the qualities of courage, concentration, determination and patience and this saw Yashpal Sharma add a lot of substance to the Indian middle order from 1979 to 1983. An ideal man for a crisis, Yashpal could blunt the edge of any attack with solid defence, and though he might not have been a very attractive batsman to watch, none could argue against his value to the side. A score of 173 for North Zone against South Zone in the Duleep Trophy in 1977-78 brought him close to national recognition. He toured Pakistan the following season but did not make the Test team. But he did well on the England tour in 1979, scoring 884 runs (58.93) and played in three of the four Tests. He was a regular member of the Indian team during the twin rubbers against Australia and Pakistan in 1979-80, making a number of valuable contributions including his maiden Test hundred against Australia at New Delhi. However an indifferent showing on the tour of Australia and New Zealand the following season (though he did get 201 not out against Victoria) saw him lose his place. But he bounced back against England in 1981-82 and at Madras he scored 140, sharing a record 316 run stand with GR Viswanath. The two batted throughout the second day's play.

Yashpal then remained a regular member of the team on the tours of England in 1982, and Pakistan and West Indies in 1982-83, always being a difficult batsman to dislodge. He was one of the heroes of the 1983 World Cup-winning squad and his innovative batting and excellent running the wickets saw him make the transition comfortably in the one-day game. However a sudden lapse in form during the 1983-84 season against Pakistan and West Indies saw him lose his place in the Test side and he never regained it, though he did play in a few one day games. Yashpal served as an Indian selector for a couple years.
Partab Ramchand June 2008

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Dec 22, 2003 Yashpal Sharma with Azmat Rana and Mansoor Akhtar © AFP

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