Mulvantrai Mankad, affectionately known to cricketers throughout his life by his schoolboy nickname of Vinoo, died in Bombay on August 21, 1978, aged 61. He was one of the greatest allrounders that India has ever produced. In Tests he scored 2109 runs with an average of 31.47 and took 162 wickets at 32.31. He made five centuries and twice took eight wickets in an innings. Against New Zealand at Madras in 1955-56 he scored 231, and with P Roy put on 413 for the first wicket, a record for any Test. His average for that series was 105. When India gained their first victory over England, at Madras in 1952, his bowling was almost wholly responsible. On a wicket which gave him little assistance he took eight for 55 and four for 53. His most famous feat was against England at Lord's in 1952 when going in first he scored 72 and 184. In the second innings he went straight to the wicket after bowling 31 overs that day. In the whole match he bowled 97 overs and took five for 231. England won by eight wickets, but Mankad's performance must surely rank as the greatest ever done in a Test by a member of the losing side. Indeed in assessing his record one must remember that of the 44 Tests between 1946 and 1959 in which he played India won five only.

As a bowler, he was a slow left-hander of the old-fashioned orthodox type, varying his natural legbreak with a faster one which came with his arm and got him lots of wickets. His figures in 1946 are the more creditable when one realises that for most of the tour he was suffering from an injury which made this ball tiring and difficult to bowl. As a boy he had experimented with the chinaman but was fortunately persuaded by that shrewd coach, Bert Wensley, to abandon it. For some years he was undoubtedly the best bowler of his type in the world.

His son, Ashok played for India in fifteen Tests as a batsman. The pair provide one of the rare instances of father and son both representing their country.
Wisden Cricketers' Almanack