Venkatesh Prasad turns 52: Rare photos with his wife and India teammates

Former Indian pacer Venkatesh Prasad celebrates his 52nd birthday on August 5, 2021. On this auspicious day, we take a look at some very rare pictures of Venkatesh Prasad, during his golden years in the late 1990s. Pictures/mid-day

Updated On: 2021-08-05 01:12 PM IST

Venkatesh Prasad turns 52: Rare, unseen photos with his wife and teammates

Venkatesh Prasad is a former Indian fast bowler who played for India from 1994 to 2001. In a short career of seven years, he etched his mark in the memories of every Indian who followed cricket in the 1990s

Venkatesh Prasad's full name is Bapu Krishnarao Venkatesh Prasad and he hails from Bengaluru. On and off the field he was known to be a well-behaved and disciplined individual with a strategical mind. (Pic/Ramesh H S)

Venkatesh Prasad has played for Team India in 33 Tests taking 96 wickets and 161 ODIs picking 196 scalps

1996 was a golden year for Venkatesh Prasad as he took 10 wickets in a Test match vs South Africa and also took a five-wicket haul against England. Venkatesh Prasad took 55 wickets in 15 Tests and 48 wickets in 30 ODIs in the 1996/97 season, which lead to him being named the CEAT International Cricketer of the year

One of Venkatesh Prasad's most memorable moments in his career came during the 1996 World Cup, when after being hit for a boundary and openly sledged by Pakistan batsman Aamir Sohail, Prasad clean bowled Sohail on the very next ball (which many consider the turning point of the match). In pic: With former pacer Javagal Srinath

India's World Cup matches against Pakistan seemed to get the best out of Venkatesh Prasad back in the day. During the match against Pakistan at the 1999 World Cup, Venkatesh Prasad flourished with a spell of 5-27 to help India defend a paltry 227. Predictably, the celebrations within India went through the roof and Venkatesh Prasad was hailed as a hero. In pic: With his wife Jayanthi

Venkatesh Prasad married Jayanthi in 1996 in an intimate ceremony. Prasad was the quintessential no. 11 in the team, with a high score of 37. He was also known for being dismissed in the funniest ways, down the batting order

Venkatesh Prasad was the answer for India's team management hunt for a bowling coach, after India's disastrous 2007 ICC World Cup campaign. He held onto the post for more than two years before he was relieved of his post

Venkatesh Prasad's coaching stint was not restricted to just Team India. He was also the head coach of the Royal Challengers Bangalore during the inaugural season in 2008. In pic: With Sachin Tendulkar

Venkatesh Prasad and Sarandeep Singh at an IPL party held at Maurya Sheraton in New Delhi on March 19, 2010 (Pic/Rajeev Tyagi)

Venkatesh Prasad and Muthiah Muralitharan share a fun moment during their net practice at Wankhede Stadium during Royal Challengers Bangalore's campaign at the IPL (PIC/ SURESH K.K)

Venkatesh Prasad passing through the Vykunta Dwara on the occasion of Vykunta Ekadashi at Devagiri Venkateshwara Temple in Banglore. (pic/Ramesh H S)

Sunil Joshi, Venkatesh Prasad, Javagal Srinath and Sujeet Soma Sundaram stare at the monument wall at Chinnaswamy stadium in Bangalore in order to mark Dravid's 10,000 Test runs in September 2008. Pic/ Suresh K.K.

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