When Sunil Gavaskar Was Exchanged With A Fisherwoman's Kid At Birth

Sunil Gavaskar during an event [X.com]Sunil Gavaskar during an event [X.com]

Sunil Gavaskar, the Indian legend who celebrates his 75th birthday on Wednesday, was exchanged with a fisherwoman's kid at birth and was later returned to the Gavaskars.

Former Indian captain and the first man to breach the 10,000 run mark and score 30 centuries in Test cricket, Sunil Gavaskar made his debut for India in Port of Spain against the fiery West Indies in 1971. 

During his 17 year career, Gavaskar scored 10,122 runs in Test cricket at an average of 51.12 with 34 centuries to his name. In ODIs, he scored close to 3100 runs with a century to his name. The little master was also a senior member of India's first-ever World Cup winning squad in 1983.

However, the cricketing world could have almost never have gotten this gem if the events that transpired in 1949 were not rectified by his uncle.


When New-Born Sunil Was Exchanged With A Fisherwoman

As mentioned by the man himself in his autobiography, Sunny Days, when Sunil Gavaskar was born in 1949, due to the negligence of hospital nurse, he almost went to a fisherwoman's home instead of Gavaskars.

Fortunately enough, Sunil's uncle had seen a hole on his nephew's left ear. However, when he noticed that the child with the Gavaskar family was not the one with the hole on earlobe that he had seen, he immediately took the matter in his hands and contacted the relevant hospital authorities and got his nephew back who was seen with a fisherwoman's family.

As Gavaskar says in his autobiography, the mix-up appeared to have been followed after the baths of both the babies when the nurse switched the babies mistakenly.