Ten Years Of The Cace

These are a few of the many memorable moments witnessed at the Castrol Awards for Cricketing Excellence functions held over the last ten years.

The yesterday, today and tomorrow of Indian cricket have been feted at the CASTROL Awards for Cricketing Excellence Ceremony since 1997. The winners and achievers on the stage have been applauded by the cream of India’s cricketing fraternity.

Over the years, the awards have evolved, not only numerically, but also in stature. No other ratings system has blended objectivity with subjectivity as comprehensively. Performances by Indian cricketers in international matches were initially tracked during the period 1st October to 30th September and more recently from January – December, and rated on the basis of a points system. This system threw up the ‘top five’ cricketers of the year in terms of points. India’s cricketing community then ‘voted’ for the winner from among the five nominees. This system was devised to bring about a bit of subjectivity in case of a close tie – ensuring that the cricketer who had scored the points in challenging situations and against stronger opponents, were recognized for this.

The first two awards functions, for 1997-98 and 1998-99 respectively, featured just two prizes - the CASTROL Indian Cricketer of the Year and the CASTROL Junior Cricketer of the Year. A third category – the CASTROL Lifetime Achievement in Cricket Award – was created and added in 1999-00, with Capt. Vijay Hazare being the first winner. The same year, the Mumbai team was felicitated for winning the Ranji Trophy for the 34th time.

For the next four years, the CASTROL Awards Ceremonies witnessed the presentation of the three main awards, plus several ‘Special’ awards. Prominent Special Award-winners were Sourav Ganguly and John Wright for ‘making a difference’ to Indian cricket in 2002-03.

Four awards were added to the roster in 2004-05. These were individual awards, given to Indian players for outstanding batting and bowling performances in Tests and ODIs. The function for 2004-05 was the first to be held overseas, in Johannesburg, South Africa. The venue was specially selected to commemorate 15 years since South Africa returned to international cricket and special awards were also given to South African cricketers.

It was at this function that CASTROL announced the change of the 12-month period considered for the awards, from 1st October to 30th September, to the calendar year. The CASTROL points system will be applied to performances by Indian cricketers in international matches from 1st January to 31st December from 2006 onwards.

Now in their eleventh year, the CASTROL Awards for Cricketing Excellence have become synonymous with Indian cricket. It is only fitting that 2007, when the Awards celebrate their tenth anniversary, also marks the 75th anniversary of India's inaugural Test match!