18th June 1983 will be a special day in the history of Indian cricket. In an era where ODI cricket was played for a total of 120 overs, with white clothes and a red ball, Kapil Nikunj Dev emerged as a connoisseur. It was on this day that the former Indian skipper played his epic knock of 175 not out against Zimbabwe at Turnbridge Wells during the 1983 World Cup.

It was a knock which achieved special place in cricketing folklore due to the mere fact that there was no television coverage. Ranveer Singh’s movie 83 captured the entire mood ahead of the epic knock. Half the team is out with the score reading 17 on the board. Sunil Gavaskar and Kris Srikkanth were out for ducks, while Mohinder Amarnath scored five runs. Sandeep Patil was out for one, and Yashpal Sharma scored nine.

As this was happening, Kapil Dev was taking a shower until a knock on his door interrupted him. What felt like a joke turned into a harsh reality as he spotted his batters with a forlorn look on their faces. If you watch the movie again, you can see the 24-year-old captain run to the middle with just his pads on and looking intently at the Zimbabwean fans who were making noise.

Knock that changed India’s ODI cricket

Cricket fans supporting India had already started making their way back home in complete disappointment.

It was a battle for survival as the skipper added 60 runs for the sixth wicket with Roger Binny, who scored 22 runs from 48 balls. Ravi Shastri fell soon after for one run, and the Indians were now 78/7.

Madan Lal stuck it out as he helped his captain score runs with the duo adding 62 runs for the eighth wicket. Lal was out for 17 when he was caught by David Houghton off Kevin Curran.

This is where the entire story changed.

The Indian wicketkeeper had apparently told Dev, “Let us fight and perish.” And boy did the par put up a fight! 126 unbeaten runs for the ninth wicket as India reached 266 runs from their 60 overs. It wasn’t until the umpire told the Indian all-rounder that he knew that a new record had been set.

Kapil’s score of 175 was the highest individual score in ODI history, beating the 171 scored by former New Zealand skipper Glenn Turner in 1975. The Indian star scored his runs off a mere 138 balls with the help of 16 fours and six huge hits.

The deflated Zimbabwean side scored 235 runs and lost the game by 31 runs. Madan picked up three wickets while Binny snared two. Curran’s knock of 73 was the best for the side batting second. For all those people who had come to the ground on that fateful day, it was almost like watching a magician at the peak of his powers. Indian fans who had left the ground performed a U-Turn as they headed back to the ground after hearing the action on their radio sets.

Former Teammates have their say on the epic knock

Years later, while speaking on the Breakfast with Champions show, Mr. Gavaskar said, “That innings of 175, what a pity it wasn’t recorded. It was planning of the highest order, thebest ODI innings that I have seen. It has taken mythical proportions, and it deserves to be. That knock transformed the game and also changed Indian cricket on the whole”

Shastri, during an award ceremony, had said that knock had changed the mind of the player in the dressing room. He also said that it helped the morale of the team to be raised to a level where everyone knew that something special was in the offing.

The man himself, while speaking to Gaurav Kapoor on his show Breakfast with Champions, said: “God gives you a chance and said, ‘go… enjoy the moment’ It was my day. I was nervous as a captain, and you have responsibilities.” When asked what he felt having lost half the team for 17 runs, Kapil simply said: “Best part was that, didn’t realize what had happened.”