Dattajirao Gaekwad, India’s oldest Test cricketer, dies; BCCI comes up with heartfelt tribute

Dattajirao Gaekwad, who was the father of former India opener and national coach Aunshuman Gaekwad, was 95

India’s oldest Test cricketer and former captain Dattajirao Gaekwad died on Tuesday due to age-related ailments.

Gaekwad, who was the father of former India opener and national coach Aunshuman Gaekwad, was 95.

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He breathed his last early this morning after battling for life in the ICU of a Baroda hospital for the past 12 days, a source in the family told PTI.

“The BCCI expresses its profound grief at the passing away of Dattajirao Gaekwad, former India captain and India’s oldest Test cricketer. He played in 11 Tests and led the team during India’s Tour of England in 1959. Under his captaincy, Baroda also won the Ranji Trophy in the 1957-58 season, beating Services in the final. The Board expresses its heartfelt condolences to Gaekwad’s family, friends, and admirers,” wrote the BCCI on X (formerly known as Twitter) in a tribute.

He played 11 Tests for India between 1952 and 1961, captaining the national team in 1959 when it toured England.

The right-hander made his debut against England at Leeds in 1952 and his final international game was against Pakistan in Chennai in 1961.

In the Ranji Trophy, Gaekwad represented Baroda from 1947 to 1961. He scored 3139 runs at an average of 47.56, including 14 hundreds.

His highest was a 249 not out against Maharashtra in the 1959-60 season.

He became India’s oldest living Test cricketer in 2016 after the death of former batter Deepak Shodhan at the age of 87 in Ahmedabad.

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