Chandra Nayudu | |
---|---|
Born | 1933 |
Died | 4 April 2021 (aged 88) Indore,
Madhya Pradesh, India |
Occupation(s) | Sports commentator, cricketer, professor |
Chandra Nayudu (1933 – 4 April 2021) was an Indian cricket commentator, cricketer, professor, and author. She was India's first female cricket commentator, as well as one of India's earliest woman cricketers. [1] [2] [3]
Chandra Nayudu was born in 1933 in a Telugu-speaking Kapu family. [4] [5] [6] [7] Her father, C. K. Nayudu, was a well-known cricketer and the captain of India's first Test cricket team. [8] [3] She was the youngest of the three daughters of C. K. Nayudu from his first wife. [9] Her uncle C. S. Nayudu also played for India, while her nephew Vijay Nayudu was a first-class cricketer. [8] [10] Her ancestors hailed from Machilipatnam town in Andhra Pradesh. [11] [12]
Nayudu graduated with a degree in English, and taught English at a government college in Indore, Madhya Pradesh. [3] Nayudu competed briefly in domestic women's cricket, leading the first Uttar Pradesh women's cricket team, [13][ non-primary source needed] and played cricket for her college, before taking up cricket commentary in the 1970s. [10] She was India's first female cricket commentator. [1] [2] [3] She began her career in commentary in a match between the touring Marylebone Cricket Club (MCC) vs. Bombay in the 1976–77 season, and continued to comment for domestic and international matches in Hindi and English. [14] She was also a commentator during the English team's tour of India in 1979-1980 for India's public broadcaster, All India Radio, [15] and later recorded her experiences in cricket commentary for an interview with cricket historian David Rayvern Allen, archived with Lord's. [13] According to Nayudu, she was the first female international cricket commentator, preceding an Australian woman commentator. [13] In an interview with ESPNcricinfo, she stated that her interest in cricket commentary began as a way of honoring her father's achievements in cricket. [16] In 1982, she was invited to the Golden Jubilee Test Match between India and England. [17]
She was a life member of the Madhya Pradesh Cricket Association, and undertook several efforts to promote women's cricket in the region, including establishing an inter-university tournament. [3] According to her nephew, former cricketer Vijay Nayudu, she created several trophies in memory of her parents for cricket tournaments, including the presentation of a silver bat to the Cricket Club of India, and a collegiate memorial trophy for her mother. [2] Her last posting was as a principal in early 1990 at the Government Girls PG College in Indore. [3] In 1995, she published a memoir of her father titled C.K. Nayudu: A Daughter Remembers. [14]
Nayudu lived at Manorama Ganj in Indore, close to the Holkar Stadium, where her father frequently played. [1] She passed away in Indore on 4 April 2021 at the age of 88. [2]
Chandra Nayudu | |
---|---|
Born | 1933 |
Died | 4 April 2021 (aged 88) Indore,
Madhya Pradesh, India |
Occupation(s) | Sports commentator, cricketer, professor |
Chandra Nayudu (1933 – 4 April 2021) was an Indian cricket commentator, cricketer, professor, and author. She was India's first female cricket commentator, as well as one of India's earliest woman cricketers. [1] [2] [3]
Chandra Nayudu was born in 1933 in a Telugu-speaking Kapu family. [4] [5] [6] [7] Her father, C. K. Nayudu, was a well-known cricketer and the captain of India's first Test cricket team. [8] [3] She was the youngest of the three daughters of C. K. Nayudu from his first wife. [9] Her uncle C. S. Nayudu also played for India, while her nephew Vijay Nayudu was a first-class cricketer. [8] [10] Her ancestors hailed from Machilipatnam town in Andhra Pradesh. [11] [12]
Nayudu graduated with a degree in English, and taught English at a government college in Indore, Madhya Pradesh. [3] Nayudu competed briefly in domestic women's cricket, leading the first Uttar Pradesh women's cricket team, [13][ non-primary source needed] and played cricket for her college, before taking up cricket commentary in the 1970s. [10] She was India's first female cricket commentator. [1] [2] [3] She began her career in commentary in a match between the touring Marylebone Cricket Club (MCC) vs. Bombay in the 1976–77 season, and continued to comment for domestic and international matches in Hindi and English. [14] She was also a commentator during the English team's tour of India in 1979-1980 for India's public broadcaster, All India Radio, [15] and later recorded her experiences in cricket commentary for an interview with cricket historian David Rayvern Allen, archived with Lord's. [13] According to Nayudu, she was the first female international cricket commentator, preceding an Australian woman commentator. [13] In an interview with ESPNcricinfo, she stated that her interest in cricket commentary began as a way of honoring her father's achievements in cricket. [16] In 1982, she was invited to the Golden Jubilee Test Match between India and England. [17]
She was a life member of the Madhya Pradesh Cricket Association, and undertook several efforts to promote women's cricket in the region, including establishing an inter-university tournament. [3] According to her nephew, former cricketer Vijay Nayudu, she created several trophies in memory of her parents for cricket tournaments, including the presentation of a silver bat to the Cricket Club of India, and a collegiate memorial trophy for her mother. [2] Her last posting was as a principal in early 1990 at the Government Girls PG College in Indore. [3] In 1995, she published a memoir of her father titled C.K. Nayudu: A Daughter Remembers. [14]
Nayudu lived at Manorama Ganj in Indore, close to the Holkar Stadium, where her father frequently played. [1] She passed away in Indore on 4 April 2021 at the age of 88. [2]