Saad Bin Jung (born 26 October 1960) is a former Indian cricketer who played
first-class cricket
First-class cricket, along with List A cricket and Twenty20 cricket, is one of the highest-standard forms of cricket. A first-class match is one of three or more days' scheduled duration between two sides of eleven players each and is officia ...
from 1978 to 1984. He is now a conservationist and lives in his village of Mangala near
Bandipur in
Karnataka
Karnataka (; ISO: , , also known as Karunāḍu) is a state in the southwestern region of India. It was formed on 1 November 1956, with the passage of the States Reorganisation Act. Originally known as Mysore State , it was renamed ''Karnat ...
,
India
India, officially the Republic of India (Hindi: ), is a country in South Asia. It is the seventh-largest country by area, the second-most populous country, and the most populous democracy in the world. Bounded by the Indian Ocean on the so ...
, whilst his children manage his wildlife resort, The Bison, on the
Kabini River
The Kabini River is one of the major tributaries of the river Cauvery in southern India. It originates near Kavilumpara in Kozhikode district of Kerala state by the confluence of the Panamaram River and the Mananthavady River. It flows eastw ...
in South India.
Early life
Saad Bin Jung was born into the
Paigah family
Paigah is a noble family in the senior aristocracy of Hyderabad State, who were associated with the ruling Nizam since its inception and each maintained his own court, individual palaces, and a standing army of about fourteen thousand troops, ...
of
Hyderabad state, and the royalty of
Bhopal
Bhopal (; ) is the capital city of the Indian state of Madhya Pradesh and the administrative headquarters of both Bhopal district and Bhopal division. It is known as the ''City of Lakes'' due to its various natural and artificial lakes. It i ...
and
Pataudi
Pataudi is a town and one of the 4 sub-divisions of Gurugram district, in the Indian state of Haryana, within the boundaries of the National Capital Region of India. Ahirs/Yadav dominate the area. It is located from Gurugram, at the foot hills ...
. He is the son of Nawab Bashir Yar Jung and his wife, the titular
Begum of Bhopal
The Nawabs of Bhopal were the Muslim rulers of Bhopal, now part of Madhya Pradesh, India. The nawabs first ruled under the Mughal Empire from 1707 to 1737, under the Maratha Empire from 1737 to 1818, then under British rule from 1818 to 1947, a ...
, Saleha Sultan. The
Paigah family
Paigah is a noble family in the senior aristocracy of Hyderabad State, who were associated with the ruling Nizam since its inception and each maintained his own court, individual palaces, and a standing army of about fourteen thousand troops, ...
was one of the highest feudal landowning families of
Hyderabad
Hyderabad ( ; , ) is the capital and largest city of the Indian state of Telangana and the ''de jure'' capital of Andhra Pradesh. It occupies on the Deccan Plateau along the banks of the Musi River, in the northern part of Southern India ...
. Saad's father, Bashir Yar Jung, was from the Paigah Vicar ul Umra, and his mother, Saleha Sultan, was the eldest daughter of her highness
Sajida Sultan
Nawab Begum Sajida Sultan Ali Khan Pataudi (4 August 1915 – 5 September 1995) was the daughter of the Nawab of Bhopal, Hamidullah Khan, and the wife and Begum Consort of Iftikhar Ali Khan Pataudi, the 8th Nawab of Pataudi, and in her own ri ...
, the
Begum of Bhopal
The Nawabs of Bhopal were the Muslim rulers of Bhopal, now part of Madhya Pradesh, India. The nawabs first ruled under the Mughal Empire from 1707 to 1737, under the Maratha Empire from 1737 to 1818, then under British rule from 1818 to 1947, a ...
and
Iftikhar Ali Khan Pataudi,
Nawab of Pataudi
The term Nawab of Pataudi refers to the lineage of rulers of the former princely Pataudi State in Northern India. Pataudi was established in 1804 by the British East India Company, when Faiz Talab Khan, an Afghan Muslim Pashtun of the Barech ...
, and was the sister of
Mansoor Ali Khan Pataudi
Nawab Mohammad Mansoor Ali Khan Pataudi (also known as Mansur Ali Khan, or M. A. K. Pataudi; 5 January 1941 – 22 September 2011; nicknamed Tiger Pataudi) was an Indian cricketer and a former captain of the Indian cricket team.
Pataudi was a ...
, the 9th Nawab of Pataudi. Both nawabs, known respectively as "Pataudi Senior" and "Pataudi Junior", were distinguished cricketers who captained the
Indian Test team. Saad is the great-grandson of
Hamidullah Khan, the
Nawab of Bhopal, who succeeded to the throne of
Bhopal
Bhopal (; ) is the capital city of the Indian state of Madhya Pradesh and the administrative headquarters of both Bhopal district and Bhopal division. It is known as the ''City of Lakes'' due to its various natural and artificial lakes. It i ...
after a long reign of royal queens. Major General of Pakistan,
Sher Ali Khan
Sher Ali Khan (); c. 1825 – 21 February 1879) was Amir of Afghanistan from 1863 to 1866 and from 1868 until his death in 1879. He was one of the sons of Dost Mohammed Khan, founder of the Barakzai dynasty in Afghanistan.
Life
Sher Ali Khan ...
, is his great-granduncle, and the diplomat
Shahryar Khan
Shahryar Mohammad Khan ( ur, شہریار محمد خان; born 12 March 1934) is a former career Pakistan diplomat who became Foreign Secretary of Pakistan in 1990, and remained so until his retirement from service in 1994. He later served as ...
is his uncle, through her grandaunt
Abida Sultan
Princess Suraya Jah, Nawab Gowhar-i-Taj, Abida Sultan Begum Sahiba (28 August 1913 – 11 May 2002) was the eldest daughter of Hamidullah Khan, the last Nawab of the Bhopal state, and his wife Begum Maimoona Sultan.
Life and family
Sultan is th ...
. The actress
Sharmila Tagore
Sharmila Tagore (also known as Begum Ayesha Sultana; born 8 December 1944) is a retired Indian actress, primarily known for her work in Hindi and Bengali cinema, Tagore is the recipient of two National Film Awards, a Filmfare Award, and the F ...
is his aunt by marriage (Mansoor's wife), and the actors
Saif Ali Khan
Saif Ali Khan (; born Sajid Ali Khan Pataudi; 16 August 1970) is an Indian actor and film producer who works in Hindi films. Part of the Pataudi family, he is the son of actress Sharmila Tagore and cricketer Mansoor Ali Khan Pataudi.
Khan ...
and
Soha Ali Khan
Soha Ali Khan Pataudi Khemu (born 4 October 1978) is an Indian actress who has worked in Hindi, Bengali and English films. She is the daughter of veteran actress Sharmila Tagore and former Indian cricket captain Mansoor Ali Khan Pataudi, and t ...
, and
Saba Ali Khan
Saba Ali Khan Pataudi is an Indian jewelry designer and mutawalli (Chief Trustee) of the Auqaf-e-Shahi (Royal Trust), established by the-then ‘ Princely State’ of the Kingdom of Bhopal as a royal charitable endowment.
Background
Khan, a mem ...
, are his first cousins.
Saad grew up in
Hyderabad
Hyderabad ( ; , ) is the capital and largest city of the Indian state of Telangana and the ''de jure'' capital of Andhra Pradesh. It occupies on the Deccan Plateau along the banks of the Musi River, in the northern part of Southern India ...
, where he attended
Hyderabad Public School
The Hyderabad Public School, Begumpet (HPS, Begumpet) is a privately funded public school in Hyderabad, Telangana State, India.
Children are schooled from the pre-primary stage to the 12th standard (ages 3 to 17). The school is affiliated with ...
and
Nizam College
The Nizam College is a constituent college of Osmania University established in 1887 during the reign of Mir Mahbub Ali Khan, Asaf Jah VI, in Basheerbagh, Hyderabad, Telangana.
History
The Nizampur University College was originally the "Mirsa ...
.
Cricket career
After playing schools cricket in the
Cooch Behar Trophy
The Cooch Behar Trophy is India's national four-day cricket tournament for under-19 players. It has been held annually since the 1945–46 season. It is run by the Board of Control for Cricket in India.
History
The trophy was donated by, and ...
, Saad Bin Jung was selected just after his 18th birthday to play his first-class debut match for India Under-22s against the touring
West Indians
A West Indian is a native or inhabitant of the West Indies (the Antilles and the Lucayan Archipelago). For more than 100 years the words ''West Indian'' specifically described natives of the West Indies, but by 1661 Europeans had begun to use ...
in November 1978. Opening the batting, he made 58, batting "most impressively, using the hook and cover-drive to advantage" against the pace attack of
Sylvester Clarke,
Malcolm Marshall
Malcolm Denzil Marshall (18 April 1958 – 4 November 1999) was a Barbadian cricketer. Primarily a fast bowler, Marshall is widely regarded as one of the greatest and one of the most accomplished fast bowlers of the modern era in Test cricket ...
and
Vanburn Holder
Vanburn Alonzo Holder (born 10 October 1945) is a Barbadian former first-class cricketer who played in 40 Test matches and 12 One Day Internationals for the West Indies cricket team between 1969 and 1979. A fast-medium bowler, he bowled along ...
. Two weeks later, also against the West Indians, he made 113 for
South Zone, batting at number three, out of a team total of 283 for 8 declared. ''
Wisden
''Wisden Cricketers' Almanack'', or simply ''Wisden'', colloquially the Bible of Cricket, is a cricket reference book published annually in the United Kingdom. The description "bible of cricket" was first used in the 1930s by Alec Waugh in a ...
'' declared that he "batted with calm assurance" and held out "promise of playing Test cricket in the future".
He was selected for an Indian Board President's XI against the West Indians later in the season, and also against the
Pakistan touring team early the next season, the latter was ruined by rain and he did not bat. He also played
Duleep Trophy
The Duleep Trophy, also known as Mastercard Duleep trophy due to sponsorship reasons, is a domestic first-class cricket competition played in India. Named after Kumar Shri Duleepsinhji of Nawanagar (also known as 'Duleep'), the competition wa ...
matches for South Zone in 1979-80. His innings of note in 1979-80 was 136 not out in seven hours, batting for
Hyderabad
Hyderabad ( ; , ) is the capital and largest city of the Indian state of Telangana and the ''de jure'' capital of Andhra Pradesh. It occupies on the Deccan Plateau along the banks of the Musi River, in the northern part of Southern India ...
against
Tamil Nadu
Tamil Nadu (; , TN) is a state in southern India. It is the tenth largest Indian state by area and the sixth largest by population. Its capital and largest city is Chennai. Tamil Nadu is the home of the Tamil people, whose Tamil language ...
in the
Ranji Trophy, the only century in a drawn match.
After two matches in 1980-81 he contracted an illness which led to a long period of hospitalisation. After recovery, disenchanted with cricket in Hyderabad, he played the 1983-84 season with
Haryana
Haryana (; ) is an Indian state located in the northern part of the country. It was carved out of the former state of East Punjab on 1 Nov 1966 on a linguistic basis. It is ranked 21st in terms of area, with less than 1.4% () of India's land a ...
, scoring 256 runs at an average of 32.00 in six matches, helping Haryana to reach the Ranji Trophy semi-finals. He then retired from cricket at the age of 23.
Conservation career
Saad and his wife Sangeeta now run their
eco-resorts on the banks of the
Kabini River
The Kabini River is one of the major tributaries of the river Cauvery in southern India. It originates near Kavilumpara in Kozhikode district of Kerala state by the confluence of the Panamaram River and the Mananthavady River. It flows eastw ...
in
Karnataka
Karnataka (; ISO: , , also known as Karunāḍu) is a state in the southwestern region of India. It was formed on 1 November 1956, with the passage of the States Reorganisation Act. Originally known as Mysore State , it was renamed ''Karnat ...
. They started their conservation career at
Bandipur National Park in
Karnataka
Karnataka (; ISO: , , also known as Karunāḍu) is a state in the southwestern region of India. It was formed on 1 November 1956, with the passage of the States Reorganisation Act. Originally known as Mysore State , it was renamed ''Karnat ...
in 1992 where they still run The Bandipur Cottage. The Jungs owned a wildlife lodge in Bandipur which Sangeeta decided to convert into an eco-resort. As Bandipur turned commercial, the Jungs purchased a piece of land near the Kabini backwaters in 1993. Today their son Shaaz and daughter Zoha Jung run the eco-tourism resort with African-style tents and local cuisine. Zoha has also established an equine rescue centre at the camp. She has achieved international acclaim for her work.
The Jungs aim to reconcile the needs of the local people with the needs of conservation through a sustained process of dialogue and trust-building utilizing eco-tourism as the integral tool for conservation. They have also been taking safari tours to Africa since 1995.
Saad has written three books, all with conservation themes: ''Wild Tales from the Wild'', about the people and wildlife of the Mangala valley in
Karnataka
Karnataka (; ISO: , , also known as Karunāḍu) is a state in the southwestern region of India. It was formed on 1 November 1956, with the passage of the States Reorganisation Act. Originally known as Mysore State , it was renamed ''Karnat ...
; ''Subhan and I: My Adventure with the Angling Legend of India'', about
angling
Angling is a fishing technique that uses a fish hook or "angle" (from Old English ''angol'') attached to a fishing line to tether individual fish in the mouth. The fishing line is usually manipulated via a fishing rod, although rodless techni ...
for
mahseer
Mahseer is the common name used for the genera '' Tor'', ''Neolissochilus'', '' Naziritor'' and ''Parator'' in the family Cyprinidae (carps). The name is, however, more often restricted to members of the genus ''Tor''.Sen TK, Jayaram KC, 1982. Th ...
in the
Cauvery River
The Kaveri (also known as Cauvery, the anglicized name) is one of the major Indian rivers flowing through the states of Karnataka and Tamil Nadu. The Kaveri river rises at Talakaveri in the Brahmagiri range in the Western Ghats, Kodagu dist ...
; and a novel, ''Matabele Dawn'', a
thriller set in Africa and India.
Saad and his wife have homes near Bandipur and in
Indiranagar
Indiranagar is a medium-sized neighbourhood in east Bangalore, Karnataka, India. A cosmopolitan locality, Indiranagar is one of the most expensive neighbourhoods in Bangalore.
History
Indiranagar was formed as a BDA layout in the late 1970s, ...
, an eastern suburb of
Bangalore
Bangalore (), List of renamed places in India, officially Bengaluru (), is the Capital city, capital and largest city of the Indian state of Karnataka. It has a population of more than and a metropolitan area, metropolitan population of a ...
.
References
External links
*
"Hyderabad, a love story" by Saad Bin Jung
{{DEFAULTSORT:Jung, Saad Bin
1960 births
Living people
Indian cricketers
Hyderabad cricketers
South Zone cricketers
Haryana cricketers
Indian conservationists
Indian male novelists
21st-century Indian novelists
Cricketers from Delhi
Novelists from Delhi
21st-century Indian male writers