David Gower, Allan Lamb, Robin Jackman eat duck and score ducks!

Cricket and superstition have always walked hand in hand.

August 15, 1982. Fortified by Mohsin Khan’s 200, Pakistan were en route to a historic win at Lord’s, with England hanging on by their fingertips at the end of Day Three. Then David Gower, Allan Lamb, and Robin Jackman did something cricketers usually avoid doing, especially the night before they are expected to bat. Abhishek Mukherjee looks at the superstition that worked.

Cricket and superstitions have gone hand in hand. We all know of Len Hutton’s five-shilling coin; of Denis Compton’s four-leaf clover; of the piece of red towel carried by Steve Waugh (of which Marlon Samuels was granted a shred); Garry Sobers touching Sunil Gavaskar for luck in the 1971 series; Sachin Tendulkar putting his left pad on first; and Imran Khan’s tiger t-shirt during World Cup 1992.

Some superstitions have been universal among cricketers. A common one is to not eat duck before a match (or a day’s play), especially if you are supposed to bat the following day. The reason is obvious. Unfortunately, three “brave” men — Robin Jackman, David Gower, and Allan Lamb — decided to brave it; and paid the “price”.

The incident dates back to the summer of 1982, when both India and Pakistan toured England. The summer was lit up by some quality performances from Ian Botham, Kapil Dev, and Imran Khan — men who could define cricket in 1980s in more ways than one. It may safely be called “The Summer of the All-Rounders”.

Imran bowled his heart out in the first Test at Edgbaston with 7 for 52 and 2 for 84 (in addition to 22 and 65), but his teammates let him down. A sparkling hundred from Derek Randall converted a 21-run lead to a target of 313. Pakistan, reduced to 35 for 4 during an early burst from Botham, crashed to 199.

Mohsin sparkles, England on the edge

The pitch was a belter, and Mohsin set off with a boundary off the first ball of the Test. He was 159 by stumps, and Pakistan finished Day One on 295 for 3. Mohsin was eventually dismissed for a round 200 by Jackman (a replacement for the injured Bob Willis), caught by Chris Tavare at square-leg.

Mansoor Akhtar (57) and Zaheer Abbas (75) also contributed, and Wasim Bari and Abdul Qadir added 27 in 23 balls on a rain-affected second day. Imran declared overnight on 428 for 8.

It can be speculated whether Pakistan’s bowlers were charged up more because it was Independence Day, but they certainly dominated the English batsmen that day. Sarfraz Nawaz struck twice early on Day Three, and wickets kept falling at regular intervals.

None of the batsmen managed to reach 35. At 157 for 3 it seemed England would save the follow-on, but Abdul Qadir’s quick wickets reduced them to 226 for 9 when Jackman joined Mike Gatting. England did not add another run, and needed 3 to save the follow-on.

Duck tales

Gower (along with Derek Hodgson) wrote in Heroes and Contemporaries that the team went to dinner that night at St John’s Wood High Street. Jackson, unbeaten on nought overnight, ordered duck. Gower and Lamb followed suit. Gower and Hodgson later reminisced: “The others joked about this defiance of cricket’s superstitions.”

Lamb had a slightly different version. In an interview with Caroline Boucher of The Independent, he said: “David, Robin Jackman and myself took ourselves off to a restaurant that evening in St John’s Wood and had the canard.”

Play resumed next morning, and soon enough, Jackman was exposed against Imran before he managed a run. Jackman took a tentative half-step forward, the ball rapped on to the front pad, and Dickie Bird did not hesitate. Jackman fell for a five-ball duck. Pakistan were 201 ahead, and Imran enforced the follow-on.

An excruciating 46 minutes followed, in which Randall managed to amble to 9. Tavare, at the other end, was busy doing what he did best — existing at the crease without scoring a run. Mudassar Nazar then brought one back, pegging Randall’s off-stump.

Lamb walked out. Jackman was a No. 11, but surely Lamb would not be a victim of the ridiculous superstition? He had, after all, top-scored in the first innings with 33. He drove the first ball confidently to extra-cover. He attempted a tentative prod the next ball, and was trapped leg-before.

It was Gower’s turn. Not only was the genius from Tunbridge Wells a spectacle to watch, he was also the stand-in captain for Willis. Two balls were negotiated. Then he chased one outside off, edged it, and Bari did the rest. It was a typical David Gower dismissal: lazy, almost half-hearted but yet, even in dismissal, a shade of the immense talent that would go waste.

Yes, Gower fell for a duck as well. He would later write: “Amidst the seriousness of the situation, it didn’t take long for someone to realise the full power of the St John’s Wood High Street Duck: Jackman, Lamb and Gower, all victims.”

Lords at Lord’s

There was more rain, and England finished the day on 95 for 3, still 106 behind. Next day, resistance came from the unlikeliest of pairs — Tavare and Botham. Tavare, who was scoreless at the other end when his teammates disappeared into the pavilion, held fort as Botham slammed 69 at the other end in a 112-run stand.

Tavare kept on grinding the opposition for 406 minutes before falling to Imran for a 277-ball 82. He was eighth out; Bob Taylor and Jackman batted for another hour, adding 41 for the last wicket. Unexpectedly, Mudassar was the wrecker-in-chief with figures of 19-7-32-6. Summer of All-Rounders, indeed.

Set to chase 76 from 18 overs, Imran sent Javed Miandad to open with Mohsin. Gower used a “Sunday field” to cut down runs, and dark clouds loomed over the horizon. They eventually chased down the target in the 14th over without losing a wicket. It was Pakistan’s first victory at Lord’s, their second win on English soil, and their first in 28 years.

What followed?

– Pakistan started well at Headingley with Imran taking 5 for 49 to give them a 19-run lead. Unfortunately, both openers (Mohsin and Mudassar) fell for golden ducks to Willis, and Pakistan collapsed to 199 against Botham (5 for 74). There were a few late hiccups, but Vic Marks and Taylor added 20 for the 8th wicket to see England home.

Brief scores:

Pakistan 428 for 8 decl. (Mohsin Khan 200, Mansoor Akhtar 57, Zaheer Abbas 75; Ian Botham 3 for 148, Robin Jackman 4 for 110) and 77 for no loss beat England 227 (Sarfraz Nawaz 3 for 56, Abdul Qadir 4 for 39) and 276 (Chris Tavare 82, Ian Botham 69; Mudassar Nazar 6 for 32) by 10 wickets.

(Abhishek Mukherjee is the Chief Editor and Cricket Historian at CricketCountry. He blogs here and can be followed on Twitter here.)