Sagi Lakshmi Venkatapathy Raju. Ex: Indian cricketer

Sagi Lakshmi Venkatapathy Raju garu

Sagi Lakshmi Venkatapathy Raju pronunciation (Born July 9, 1969 in Alamuru) is an Indian cricketer. He is a right-handed batsman and a left-arm spin bowler. He was nicknamed 'Mr. Muscles" because of thin frame during his playing days. He was well known for his variations in flight and for his arm ball. Raju was a successor to Maninder Singh in the finger-spinning style. Raju was a member of the Indian spin trio of Kumble-Raju-Chauhan, in the 1990s.
Raju came into the Indian side in 1989-90 after capturing 32 wickets in the domestic season. He made his Test and One Day International debut in the tour of New Zealand. When sent in as a night-watchman in his first Test innings, he batted for more than two hours for 31 runs while six wickets fell at the other end. He was part of the Indian team in England in 1990, but the knuckle of his left hand was broken by Courtney Walsh in the match against Gloucestershire which ended his tour.
Back home in India, he helped India win the one-off Test against Sri Lanka in the only Test match played at the Sector 16 Stadium in Chandigarh. Raju was a last minute selection on a wicket that afforded turn and kept low. On the second day, he ran through the Lankan middle order with a spell for 5 wickets for two runs in 39 balls. He took one more wicket on the next day to finish with 6 for 12 in 17.5 overs, four of the batsmen failed to score. His match figures of 8 for 37 in 53 overs won him the only man of the match award of his international career. 
He last played a test match against Australia in Chennai, where he captured the wicket of Mark Waugh. Anil Kumble, on the eve of his 100th Test remarked that Raju was the best Indian spinner among his contemporaries.
He continued playing for Hyderabad for many years, making the final of the 1999-2000 Ranji Trophy. He retired from first-class cricket in December 2004, after a domestic match against Uttar Pradesh.

Present Role

Raju is currently the selector for Indian Cricket Team from south zone.
The upcoming young Indian leg-spinner Pragyan Ojha in an interview told that Raju inspired him to play for India.

Read in "తెలుగు" లో...

వెంకటపతి రాజు

1969 జూలై 9 న జన్మించిన వెంకటపతి రాజు (Sagi Lakshmi Venkatapathy Raju) భారత మాజీ క్రికెట్ క్రీడాకారుడు. కుడి చేతితో బ్యాటింగ్ చేసిననూ బౌలింగ్ మాత్రం ఎడమచేతితో చేసేవాడు. 1989-90 లో భారత టెస్ట్ మరియు వన్డే జట్టులో ప్రవేశించాడు. అతడు మొదటి సారిగా న్యూజీలాండ్ పై అంతర్జాతీయ క్రీడా జీవితం ప్రారంబించాడు. ఆడిన మొదటి టెస్ట్ లోనే తొలి ఇన్నింగ్సులో నైట్ వాచ్‌మెన్ గా ఆడి రెండు గంటల పాటు క్రీజులో నిల్చి 31 పరుగులు చేసిననూ అవతలి వైపు 6 వికెట్లు పడిపోవడం విశేషం. ఆ తర్వాత 1990 లో ఇంగ్లాండు పర్యటనకు కూడా సెలెక్ట్ అయ్యారు.

 (సాగి లక్ష్మి వెంకటపతి రాజు)