N. Kannayiram

N. Kannayiram (1927 – 1 January 1996) was a cricketer who played first-class cricket in India from 1948 to 1956. He toured the West Indies in 1952-53, but did not play Test cricket.

Kannayiram was educated at Madras Christian College.[1] 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[2] and represented Indian Universities in first-class matches against the 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. He was the seventh bowler tried, and took the last six wickets of the innings, dismissing Bombay for 433 after they had been 377 for 4.[3] In 1951-52 he took 6 for 59 against Mysore[4] and a few days later made his highest score, 56 not out, playing for South Zone against the touring MCC.[5]

He replaced Gopalaswamy Kasturirangan in the side to tour the West Indies after Kasturirangan and four others withdrew from the originally selected side.[6] He played only three of the first-class matches, scoring 44 runs and taking two wickets.[7] 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.[8] The trophy for the fourth division "A" section of the Tamil Nadu Cricket Association is named the "N. Kannayiram Shield" in his honour.