Dattajirao Gaekwad, a former captain of India and a legend of Baroda, has away at the age of 95. The Press Trust of India reports that Gaekwad, who was the oldest living Test cricket player in the nation at the time of his demise, passed away on Tuesday, February 13, from an age-related disease in a Baroda hospital.
In 1952, Gaekwad made his debut in England at Leeds as part of India’s first post-independence tour. Between 1952 and 1961, he participated in 11 Test matches, concluding in Delhi with a single half-century against the West Indies.
First class batsman Gaekwad was a prolific scorer, amassing 5788 runs from 110 games with 17 centuries, the greatest of which was 249* against Maharashtra, one of only three double hundreds at this level. In the 1957–58 season, he captained Baroda to a Ranji Trophy victory.
Anshuman, Gaekwad’s son, coached the national team in the 1990s and played 40 Test matches for his country.