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Kapil Dev warned Peter Kirsten multiple times about his early walk in the first ODI. Finally, he Mankaded him, knocking off the bail and making a loud appeal.
On this day in 1992, India’s World Cup-winning captain Kapil Dev Mankad Peter Kirsten during India’s tour of South Africa. (Image: therealkapildev/Instagram)
On this day in 1992, a controversial cricket moment unfolded when Kapil Dev mankaded South Africa batter Peter Kirsten in an official series. The term ‘mankading’ refers to a form of cricket dismissal involving running out a non-striker while they are backing up or leaving the crease when the bowler is in their final delivery stride.
Rare but legal, mankading is often frowned upon as it sparks a debate on the spirit of the game. Such was the case on December 9, 1992, when Kapil Dev resorted to this dismissal after Kirsten kept backing up too far despite multiple warnings.
The South African batter’s wicket divided opinions. Many lauded the India all-rounder for enforcing the cricket rules, whereas others questioned his sportsmanship.
This event occurred during India’s first tour of South Africa in 1992. The tour, dubbed the ‘Friendship Series’, was South Africa’s way of recognising India’s efforts in putting an end to the country’s sporting isolation. It marked the rainbow nation’s re-entry into international cricket following the Apartheid era.
It was the second ODI of the series, hosted at the St George Park Cricket Ground in Gqeberha.
India won the toss and elected to bat first on their opponents’ turf. The visitors didn’t have an ideal start to the match, getting bundled out for a paltry score of 147 runs. Woorkeri Raman, Pravin Mare and Manoj Prabhakar combined for 95 runs.
Andrew Hudson and Kepler Wessels opened the chase for South Africa. The Proteas lost Hudson early, who was bowled out by Kapil Dev.
Peter Kirsten came out to bat and formed a 12-run partnership before he was mankaded by the India all-rounder. The event silenced the home crowd as not a single soul was prepared for it.
Interestingly, it wasn’t the first time Peter Kirsten had left the crease before the bowler released their delivery.
Kapil Dev had reportedly, warned the South African multiple times about his early walk in the first ODI of the series.
Kirsten seemingly didn’t take warnings too seriously. His actions irked the India all-rounder, who took revenge by knocking off the bail at the non-striker’s end before making a loud appeal.
Since the dismissal was legal, on-field umpire Cyrus Mitchley raised his finger to send Kirsten back to the pavilion.
The incident still stands as a stark reminder of the fine line between legality and ethics in cricket.
Since the 1992 mankading event, fans have witnessed several such dismissals in Indian cricket. Stars like Ravichandran Ashwin and Deepti Sharma have gotten involved in controversies through these dismissals.
