Laxman Sivaramakrishnan Height, Weight, Age, Wife, Family
Laxman Sivaramakrishnan is an Indian cricket commentator, administrator, coach, and former professional cricketer who represented his country in the longer formats of the sport (26 wickets in 9 test matches & 15 wickets in 16 ODI matches), between April 1983 and October 1987, as a frontline spin bowler. His rise in international cricket was swift
Laxman Sivaramakrishnan Quick Info
Height
5 ft 6 in
Weight
67 kg
Date of Birth
December 31, 1965
Zodiac Sign
Capricorn
Spouse
Harini
Laxman Sivaramakrishnan is an Indian cricket commentator, administrator, coach, and former professional cricketer who represented his country in the longer formats of the sport (26 wickets in 9 test matches & 15 wickets in 16 ODI matches), between April 1983 and October 1987, as a frontline spin bowler. His rise in international cricket was swift – marked by a series of remarkable performances in the test match format in late 1984 and some stellar efforts in the ODI format in early 1985 – but so was his decline. A dramatic loss in form meant that Sivaramakrishnan played his last test match for India in January 1986 and his last ODI (and international) match in October 1987. He was not even 22 years old when he played his last international match for India. In the Indian domestic circuit, he played for his home state of Tamil Nadu (1981-82-1997-98) and Baroda (1998-99) across both formats. Although known primarily for his exploits with the ball, Sivaramakrishnan was a handy batsman at the domestic level and scored 3 centuries in Tamil Nadu’s victorious campaign in the 1987-88 season of the Ranji Trophy (the premier domestic first-class cricket competition in India). This was just Tamil Nadu’s 2nd Ranji Trophy win – after the team (known as Madras at that time and until the 1970-71 season)’s triumphant campaign in the 1954-55 season. As of May 2023, these remained Tamil Nadu’s only 2 Ranji Trophy victories.
Born Name
Laxman Sivaramakrishnan
Nick Name
LS, Siva
Laxman Sivaramakrishnan as seen in an Instagram Post in October 2022 (Laxman Sivaramakrishnan / Instagram)
Sun Sign
Capricorn
Born Place
Chennai (then known as Madras), Tamil Nadu, India
Residence
Abhiramapuram, Chennai, Tamil Nadu, India
Nationality
Education
Sivaramakrishnan had attended the Vidya Mandir Senior Secondary School in his hometown of Chennai. He had also studied at the Sri Ramakrishna Mission Vivekananda College in Mylapore, a neighborhood in the central part of Chennai.
Occupation
Cricket Commentator, Administrator, Coach, Professional Cricketer (Retired)
Laxman Sivaramakrishnan as seen in an Instagram Post in February 2021 (Laxman Sivaramakrishnan / Instagram)
Family
Father – His father owned an edible oils business.
Siblings – He has 3 older brothers.
Batting
Right-Handed
Bowling
Right-Arm Leg Break
Role
Bowler
Build
Athletic
Height
5 ft 6 in or 167.5 cm
Weight
67 kg or 147.5 lbs
Laxman Sivaramakrishnan as seen in an Instagram Post in September 2021 (Laxman Sivaramakrishnan / Instagram)
Girlfriend / Spouse
Sivaramakrishnan has dated –
Harini (1995-Present) – Sivaramakrishnan got married to a woman named Harini in June 1995, a few months after they were introduced to each other by a common friend. The couple has a daughter together named Hamsini.
Race / Ethnicity
Asian (Indian)
Hair Color
Black
Eye Color
Dark Brown
Sexual Orientation
Straight
Distinctive Features
Toned physique
Short-cropped, side-parted hair
Bespectacled
Sports a mustache
Religion
Hinduism
Laxman Sivaramakrishnan as seen in an Instagram Post in June 2021 (Laxman Sivaramakrishnan / Instagram)
Laxman Sivaramakrishnan Facts
Sivaramakrishnan first came into the spotlight during the 1981-82 season of the Ranji Trophy when he recorded sensational figures of 7/28 in the 2nd innings of Tamil Nadu’s quarter-final match against Delhi. Incredibly, all those wickets came in a spell of 11 overs.
He made his test match debut for India in April 1983, aged 17 years and 118 days – becoming the youngest Indian cricketer ever to have played a test match. This record was broken by the legendary Sachin Tendulkar in November 1989 when he made his test debut aged 16 years and 205 days.
In late 1984, in the first match of a 5-match bilateral home test series against England, Sivaramakrishnan picked up 12 wickets (6/64 and 6/117) to lead India to an 8-wicket win – the country’s first win after 31 test matches. He recorded his 3rd successive 6-wicket haul (6/99) in England’s first innings of the next match of the series but England turned the tables on India to win by 8 wickets.
Just like India did in the previous match, England broke a winless spell – this was England’s first win after 13 test matches, the country’s then-longest winless streak in test matches. England went on to win this 5-match series by a 2-1 margin even as Sivaramakrishnan finished as the highest wicket-taker (23 wickets) on either side.
In March 1985, he finished as the highest wicket-taker (10 wickets) in India’s victorious campaign at the World Championship of Cricket, a one-off tournament that was a part of the celebrations commemorating the 150th anniversary of European settlement in the Australian state of Victoria. It was played in the ODI format and featured all the 7 teams that held ‘test match’ status at that time (hosts Australia, India, Pakistan, England, New Zealand, Sri Lanka, and the West Indies).
Sivaramakrishnan made his ODI debut in late February 1985 – in India’s opening match of the group stage of the aforementioned World Championship of Cricket, against arch-rivals Pakistan. He picked up 2 wickets for 49 runs in 10 overs to help India restrict Pakistan to 183 runs. India eventually won that match by 6 wickets. In India’s next match of the tournament, he produced an excellent spell (3/39 in 10 overs) that helped India bundle out England for just 149 runs – an 86-run victory.
In India’s next (and final) match of the group stage of the tournament, he produced a miserly spell (2/32 in 10 overs) to help limit Australia to just 163 runs. India won that match by 8 wickets and finished the group stage with a perfect 3-0 win-loss record. Although Sivaramakrishnan went wicket-less in the semi-final, India smashed New Zealand by 7 wickets. In the final of the tournament, against Pakistan, he produced yet another excellent spell (3/35 in 9 overs) that helped India limit Pakistan to 176 runs.
India went on to win this final by 8 wickets. The attendance in this match (35,296 spectators) was the then-highest in Australia in a match not involving the home team. Besides finishing as the highest wicket-taker (10 wickets in 5 matches) in the tournament, Sivaramakrishnan also took the joint-most number of catches (5). The triumph at the 1985 World Championship of Cricket was India’s 2nd major global ODI title within a span of about 2 years – after the fairytale triumph at the 1983 edition of the ICC (International Cricket Council) Cricket World Cup.
Later in March 1985, in the opening match of a short quadrangular tournament (4 matches in 8 days) that was held in Sharjah (the 3rd-most populous city in the United Arab Emirates), Pakistan had bundled India out for only 125 runs. A defeat looked imminent but the Indian bowlers produced a magical performance – that included Sivaramakrishnan’s frugal spell (2/16 in 7 overs) – to knock over Pakistan for a scarcely believable total of 87 runs.
India defeated Australia by 3 wickets in the final of the tournament to win their 2nd multilateral ODI tournament within a month. This was also India’s 7th successive ODI win with Sivaramakrishnan in the team since his ODI debut in February 1985 – a streak that the team would extend to 8 matches. Overall, India won 12 out of the 16 ODI matches that he played in his career.
After such a bright start to his international career, there were high hopes that he would helm India’s spin bowling department for at least the next decade or so. However, he suffered such a dramatic loss in form over the next few months that he was hardly a regular member of Indian squads, let alone the playing XI.
He then made an unexpected comeback to the Indian team for the 1987 edition of the ICC Cricket World Cup – co-hosted by India. However, he played just 2 matches in the tournament – India’s 2nd and 3rd group-stage matches, against New Zealand and Zimbabwe, respectively. Although India won both those matches, Sivaramakrishnan picked up just 1 wicket and the latter match went on to become the last ODI (and international) appearance of his career.
Although his international career came to an abrupt and unfulfilled end, he continued to play domestic cricket for more than a decade thereafter – retiring from the sport only after the 1998-99 season. He then began his commentary career in November 2000, a stint that was still alive as of May 2023 even though his work as a commentator has been constantly ridiculed by fans due to its monotony, dullness, prejudice, and partisanship.
In May 2013, Sivaramakrishnan was named as one of the players’ representatives on the cricket committee of the International Cricket Council, the global governing body for the sport.
He has also worked as a coach and mentor in multiple official and unofficial capacities. In December 2017, the Chennai Super Kings (his home city’s IPL (Indian Premier League) franchise) appointed Sivaramakrishnan as their spin bowling coach for the tournament’s 2018 season.
Among those who played test match cricket, he shares the record for the longest ‘supposed’ surname (16 letters) with Hugh Bromley-Davenport of England. However, it must be noted that even though Sivaramakrishan is written as the latter part of his name, it cannot really be considered his surname. In his name, Laxman is patronymic (a component of a personal name based on the given name of one’s father, grandfather, or an earlier male ancestor) and Sivaramakrishnan is his given name (first name).
His name is also quite unique for the reason that it includes the names of 4 Hindu deities – Lakshman (Laxman), Shiva (Siva), Rama, and Krishna (Krishnan).
Featured Image by Laxman Sivaramakrishnan / Instagram
