Cricket has always been the most loved and celebrated sports of all times. Representing the country is an honourable job and every aspiring player aims to do so in their life. However, many players fail to live their dream. On the other hand, there are many instances where father and son have both represented their nation at the highest level.
There are many pros and cons of having connections in sports. The interesting thing is to observe how that amateur son would deal with the added pressure and the responsibility put on his shoulders because of his father’s reputation in cricket history. In cricket history, there are only a few father-son duos who had a successful run.
We at Cricfit, take a look at the 12 father-son duos in international cricket:
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Lala Amarnath-Mohinder Amarnath
Lala Amarnath is the father of Mohinder Amarnath. Lala is regarded as the father figure of Indian Cricket. He was one of the best pace bowling all-rounders ever to play for Indian Cricket Team. He was the first captain of the Indian team of Independent India and also the first batsman to score a Test match century.
Later he served as the chairman of the selection committee and also as a commentator and expert. On the other hand, Mohinder Amarnath, who is also known as ‘Jimmy’ is currently a cricket analyst. He was one of the best hitters against pace bowling. He was also the man of the series in the World Cup-winning campaign in 1983 in England.
2. Hanif Mohammad-Shoaib Mohammad
Hanif Mohammad is one of the pioneers of the game in Pakistan. Hanif was one of the best batsmen to represent Pakistan Cricket and is the first Pakistani cricketer to score a triple century in a Test match.
As per ESPNCricinfo, he was honoured as the original little master. His son Shoiab was a right-handed batsman. He currently takes trials and coaching sessions on behalf of PCB as a part of cricket development in Pakistan. He has also been the fielding coach for the Pakistan team in 2014.
3. Peter Pollock-Shaun Pollock
Peter Pollock and Shaun Pollock are two of the brightest stars of South Africa. Peter Pollock is a former South African cricketer who is also called a pooch. He was awarded The Wisden Cricketer of the year award in1996. He has also served as a selector for the South Africa Cricket Team.
Apart from bowling, he was also a proficient lower-order batsman, who added important runs to the team’s scoreboard. Shaun Pollock is a former South African bowling all-rounder who was also the captain of the side across all the formats from 2000 to 2003. He was the Wisden Cricketer of the year in 2003. He holds the record of the only player to score two Test centuries batting at number 9 position.
4. Lance Cairns- Chris Cairns
Former New Zealand cricketer Lance Cairns is the father of Chris Cairns. Lance was recognized as a cricketer to use a strange bat throughout his gaming period called as Excalibur: a bat without shoulder and hence is in conical shape instead of rectangular shape. He was an unorthodox swing bowler with a front-on action.
Chris was one of the best all-rounders to represent New Zealand during his playing days. He was also the captain of his side in ODIs. Later he worked as a commentator for Sky Sports New Zealand. In 2000, he was named as one of the five Wisden Cricketers of the year.
5. Chris Board-Stuart Broad
This is one of the most high-profile father-son duos in cricket. Chris Broad is a former English cricketer, broadcaster and is currently a cricket official. He is known for his ferocious appearance on the field. His lack of self-controlled to the destruction of his career but he has good numbers in the matches he played before the downfall. Stuart plays test and ODIs for England and is a right-arm pace bowler.
In 2011, at Nottingham in a Test match against India, he scalped a hat trick and also recorded his career then best figures of 6-46. He also holds a record of scoring the highest test match score (169) by a batsman batting at number 9 and is also the only century scored by him in his Test career so far. He is the second leading English wicket-taker in Test cricket.
6. Trevor Laughlin-Ben Laughlin
Trevor Laughlin is the father of Ben Laughlin. Trevor Laughlin played 3 Tests and 6 ODIs for Australia from 1978-79. He also played football for Mordialloc FC in Victorian Football Association.
On the other hand, Ben Laughlin plays for Australia and has played in the IPL. He is a right-arm fast-medium bowler and has also played for CSK in the past editions of the IPL.
7. Sachin Tendulkar-Arjun Tendulkar
Sachin Tendulkar is the father of Arjun Tendulkar. The former Indian cricketer, who holds a record of scoring 100 centuries in International cricket is one of the greatest to play the game. He is celebrated as one of the greatest batsmen of all time. The Master Blaster held almost every batting records during his playing days.
On the other hand, Arjun is also an aspiring youngster looking forward to building up a career as an all-rounder in cricket. He was recently selected to his state team Mumbai U-19 squad to play JY Lele India Under-19 Invitational One-Day Tournament. He has time and again seen bowling in the nets to the Indian batsmen in the practice session.
8. Geoff Marsh-Shaun Marsh-Mitchell Marsh
Geoff Marsh is the father of Shaun and Mitchell Marsh. Geoff is a former Australian opening batsman, coach, and selector. He was the coach of the Australian team when the side won the 1999 World Cup in England. He also served as a coach for Zimbabwe (2001-04) and for Sri Lanka (2011-12).
Shaun Marsh plays as an opening batsman for the Australian team and also as an occasional spin bowler. He plays for KXIP in the IPL. Mitch Marsh plays as a batting all-rounder for the Australian team and has also captained the side in the 2010 U-19 Cricket World Cup. He played for Deccan Chargers and Pune Warriors India in the IPL and has also played for RPS in 2017 (10th edition) IPL.
9. Vijay Manjrekar-Sanjay Manjrekar
Vijay Manjrekar is the father of Sanjay Manjrekar. Vijay Manjrekar was a former Indian batsman who was a fine cutter and hooker of the ball. He was an occasional off-spinner and a wicket-keeper. He represented 6 sides in Ranji Trophy.
Sanjay Manjrekar is a former Indian right-handed middle-order batsman and also an occasional wicket-keeper. He currently works as a commentator and has tasted success in this field too. He was lauded for his excellent technical batting skills.
10. Alan Butcher-Mark Butcher
Alan Butcher is the father of Mark Butcher. Alan Butcher despite being a successful cricketer in first-class cricket was an unlucky member of the one cap club of England. He just played one test match and ODI match for England. Alex was named as the Wisden Cricketer of the year in 1991. He also worked as the coach for Essex in 1993 and for Surrey from 2005 to 2008.
Mark Butcher is a former English Test cricketer who was a left-handed batsman and an occasional right-arm pace bowler. He is also a guitar player and a singer. He was awarded Honorary Life Membership of MCC in January 2010. Furthermore, Mark also worked as a commentator for Sky Sport.
11. Rod Latham-Tom Latham
Senior Latham is a former New Zealand cricketer who played tests and ODIs as an all-rounder for the team. He also played rugby for Canterbury. He had a short span in cricket.
Meanwhile, Tom Latham represents Black Caps across all the formats. He is one of the finest left-handed batsman and also a part-time wicket-keeper. He has also captained his side in ODIs. Currently, he is one of the vital cogs in the national side.
12. Datta Gaekwad-Anshuman Gaekwad
Datta Gaekwad is the father of Anshuman Gaekwad. The senior Gaekwad is a former Indian cricketer who is a right-handed batsman and also an occasional spin bowler. He was also the captain of the side in the 1959 tour. He is lauded as a batsman for knowing sure defence techniques and the ability to play crisp shots, particularly through covers.
On the other hand, Anshuman is a former right-handed Indian batsman and also a coach. He has been the coach of the Indian side twice. He was also called ‘The Great Wall’.