N. Kannayiram (20 October 1924 – 1 January 1996) was a cricketer who played first-class cricket in India between 1948 and 1956.[1] He toured the West Indies in 1952–53, but did not play Test cricket.

N. Kannayiram
N. Kannayiram Pillai
Personal information
Full name
N. Kannayiram Pillai
Born20 October 1924 (1924-10-20)
Madurai, Tamil Nadu, India
Died1 January 1996 (1996-02) (aged 71)
Madurai, Tamil Nadu
BowlingRight-arm fast-medium
Domestic team information
YearsTeam
1948/49–1956/57Madras
1948/49–1952/53South Zone
Career statistics
Competition First-class
Matches 25
Runs scored 552
Batting average 18.40
100s/50s 0/1
Top score 56 not out
Balls bowled 3,055
Wickets 48
Bowling average 29.77
5 wickets in innings 2
10 wickets in match 0
Best bowling 6/43
Catches/stumpings 6/–
Source: ESPNcricinfo, 3 December 2014

Kannayiram was educated at Madras Christian College.[2] A middle-order batsman and opening bowler, he captained the Madras University cricket team in the Rohinton Baria Trophy in 1948–49 and 1949–50[3] and played for Indian Universities in first-class matches against a Commonwealth XI in 1949–50 and MCC in 1951–52.

In 1948–49, in his first match for Madras, he took his best figures, 6 for 43 against Bombay in a quarter-final of the Ranji Trophy.[4] In 1951–52 he took 6 for 59 against Mysore[5] and a few days later made his highest score, 56 not out, playing for South Zone against the touring MCC.[6]

He replaced Gopalaswamy Kasturirangan in the Indian team which toured the West Indies in 1952–53 after Kasturirangan and four others withdrew from the originally selected side.[7] He played in three of the first-class matches, scoring 44 runs and taking two wickets.[8] After the tour he played seven more matches for Madras over the next four seasons.

When the Madurai District Cricket Association was formed in 1958, Kannayiram was appointed as its first secretary.[9] The trophy for the fourth division "A" section of the Tamil Nadu Cricket Association is named the "N. Kannayiram Shield" in his honour.

References

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  1. ^ "Obituaries in 1996". Wisden. 6 December 2005.
  2. ^ Some Outstanding Alumni of the College Retrieved 3 December 2014.
  3. ^ "Matches played by Madras University". Archived from the original on 5 October 2015. Retrieved 10 September 2017.
  4. ^ Madras v Bombay 1948-49
  5. ^ Madras v Mysore 1951-52
  6. ^ South Zone v MCC 1951-52
  7. ^ Sujit Mukherjee, Playing for India, Orient Longman, New Delhi, 1988, p. 60.
  8. ^ "India in West Indies, 1953", Wisden 1954, pp. 820-34. He is referred to as "M. Kannaiyaram".
  9. ^ History of MDCA Retrieved 3 December 2014.
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