ICC pays tribute to one of India's finest pacers Venkatesh Prasad as he turns 51

Venkatesh Prasad turned 51 on Wednesday. The medium-pacer was one of the impactful pacers during his playing days. He is known for bowling a match-winning spell against arch-rivals Pakistan during the high-octane quarterfinal clash at the MA Chinnaswamy Stadium in Bangalore. Prasad accounted for the stand-in skipper Aamer Sohail, Inzamam-ul-Haq, and, Ijaz Ahmed as the then defending champions lost the plot in that run chase. 'Venky' had also registered a fifer against Pakistan in World Cup 1999 as India continued their dominance over Pakistan in the quadrennial event.

However, it is the Bangalore cricketer's aggressive send-off to Aamer Sohail that not only made him famous, but also became a part of the cricketing folklore.

When Venkatesh Prasad had the last laugh

After having hit Prasad for a four, Sohail who was the stand-in captain in that contest pointed the bat towards the off-side boundary and warned Venky that he would be hitting him over there once again. However, on the very next delivery, the southpaw attempted a big shot only to see his off stump go for a walk as the medium-pacer had the last laugh and gave him a mouthful as he was walking back to the pavilion. It was indeed the turning point of that knockout clash as Sohail needlessly lost his wicket just as the Pakistani innings was gaining momentum. The 1992 champions then lost precious wickets of Ijaz Ahmed and Inzamam-ul-Haq. Veteran batsman Javed Miandad who was playing his final international match tried his best but his run-out ended Pakistan's hopes as India won the contest by 39 runs to qualify for the semi-finals and sent the defending champions out of the tournament.

Recalling the epic encounter, the governing body of international cricket the International Cricket Council (ICC) also posted a video on social media as 'Venky' turned a year older.

Venkatesh Prasad's cricketing career

Prasad has represented India in 33 Tests and 161 One Day Internationals from 1994 to 2001 and has picked up 96 (Tests) and 196 (ODI) scalps respectively. The tall pacer had also picked up 361 and 295 wickets 123 first-class matched and 236 List-A games respectively. Prasad was noted for his bowling combination with the legendary speedster Javagal Srinath during the 90s and early 2000s.

Post his retirement, the former medium-pacer had served as the bowling coach of Team India from 2007 to 2009.  He is the bowling coach of the 2014 IPL finalists Kings XI Punjab and was also the coach of Royal Challengers Bangalore during their inaugural season in 2008. The 51-year-old has also tried his luck in commentary and as a cricket pundit as well. 

READ: Waqar Younis Says Aamer Sohail's Behavior Against India In WC Was Uncalled For