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Reviving Subbu's ground
AN ALL-ROUNDER P. R. Subramaniam (Subbu) in his heyday
When Simpson's marked with a small celebration the completion of the first phase of the resurrection of Presidency College's Marina Grounds ten days ago, P. R. Subramaniam, Subbu to all, would have been beaming from somewhere up there. For nearly half a century, this ground had been his `baby'. And how he had nurtured it, even making it possible to have a Ranji Trophy championship match played on its turf. On that occasion, when rain had damaged the Chepauk wicket, Subbu made the Marina Grounds ready in three hours for the match!
After years of neglect, the Marina Grounds are now being revived. If all goes well, the second phase, the turfing of the ground, should be completed by the next First Division season, says former Test cricketer T. E. Srinivasan, who, teaming with TNCA grounds curator Parthasarathy, is charged with giving new life to a bit of Madras's sporting heritage.
Subbu, one of the founders of the Madras Cricket Association in 1930, was an all-round sportsman who joined Presidency College as its Physical Director that same year. He may have retired in 1960, but he continued for many years after, advising on the laying and maintaining of turf pitches not only on the Marina but also elsewhere in Madras.
When Subbu took charge of Presidency's Marina Grounds, the only turf pitches were at nearby Chepauk, in the then `whites only' Madras Cricket Club. Determined to provide Indians turf wickets, he got down to developing the Marina Grounds with `Gootlan' (Good Length') the groundsman. He laid eight pitches and Indian cricket in Madras, then in its infancy, got a chance to display itself a bit more regularly on turf than during just those annual Presidency Matches at Chepauk. Governor Sir Arthur Hope, Civilian A.F.W. Dixon, and business head Robert Denniston used to get together to raise "integrated teams" to play each other on the ground once Subbu had made Marina a turf wicket.
In the early 1940s, Government wanted to take over the Marina Grounds for construction. Subbu rang up Denniston and together they met Governor Hope, who got the order rescinded when Subbu pointed out that the takeover would be the end of "integrated cricket" in Madras. A few years later, the Police wanted to take a big slice of the eastern half of the ground. Once again, it was Subbu's personal appeal to the then Governor that saved the Marina Grounds.
It was here that Subbu laid a 440-yard track when that `Father of Sport in Madras', Harry Crowe Buck of the YMCA, said it could not be done.
That track and the one at the YMCA grounds were responsible for Athletics putting down firm roots in Madras. One of the city's better athletes was Subbu, who was in the running for a quarter-mile berth in the 1936 Olympics team. Athletics and Cricket, however, were not Subbu's only interests; he was interested in all sport and could be considered the `Father of Competitive Collegiate Sport' in Madras. He was a good coach in many of the disciplines and one of his protégés was the Madras Cricket Club groundsman Munuswamy whom he developed as a first-rate leg spinner. Munuswamy once bowled Hobbs, Sutcliffe and Sandham at the nets, Subbu used to recount; many a Madras cricketer, including C. D. Gopinath, benefited from batting against Munuswamy, he would add.
It was in 1998 that your columnist in another forum pointed out the need to resurrect the Marina Grounds after it had begun to be encroached upon. In 2000, Simpson's offered to help Presidency College improve the grounds. That was the year that Subbu passed away, aged 95. How he must be enjoying it now, seeing `his' ground get a new lease of life — after all these years of negotiation to put an end to neglect.
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