Long lost piece of paper reveals salaries of 1983 World Cup winning India team

India 1983 (Image source: Twitter)

The 1983 Cricket World Cup, which was played in England, was a watershed moment for Indian cricket. In a stunning upset, the Indian cricket team, led by Kapil Dev, triumphed as the underdog champions by upsetting the powerful West Indies. This triumph not only altered the cricket scene in India but also ignited a nationwide flurry of enthusiasm and passion for the game.

Every sporting country has a day that is engraved in the hearts of the fans and serves as an inspirational moment for youngsters to take up the sport. The 1983 victory was one such incident that is certainly inked in the minds of Indian fans. The moment of Dev lifting the World Cup at the Lords’ balcony certainly became one of the most memorable instances in fans’ memory.

Both with the bat and as well as a pace bowler, the flamboyant and fearless captain, Kapil Dev was essential. In the group stage, his unbeaten 175 against Zimbabwe changed the game for India, energizing his squad and paving the way for their eventual victory. The inning certainly gave the Indian team a belief that they can win any match which eventually transpired into a match-winning result in the finals.

Having entered the tournament as truly an underdog, the Indian team led by 24-year-old Kapil Dev triumphed against favourites and 2-time winners West Indies, led by Clive Lloyd beating all odds to lift the Prudential World Cup. After the triumph, Makarand Waigankar, a renowned journalist shared the picture of the sheet which had the names of the members as well as their salaries along with that of the team manager Bishen Singh Bedi from an ODI on September 21, 1983.

Here's India team's salary: 

The match fee received by the 1983 World Champions will leave you speechless.

📸: Ramiz Raja#RamizRaja #WorldCup2023 pic.twitter.com/8tlqqLuLSc

— CricTracker (@Cricketracker) June 25, 2023

The Indian team after their historic 1983 World Cup triumph were paid a sum of Rs. 200/day as allowance and Rs. 1500 as match fees per game. On the contrary, the 2011 World Cup-winning team received both monetary and real estate awards. Each member received roughly Rs. 2 crores from the cricket board before receiving additional honours from their respective state associations and governments.