Former India Test captain Dattajirao Gaekwad, who held the record of being the oldest-living Test cricketer in the country, died aged 95 at his residence in Baroda on Tuesday, February 13. Dattajirao played 11 Tests for India and led in 4 of them in a Test career that spanned 9 years.
Former India all-rounder Irfan Pathan took to social media to mourn the loss of the Baroda cricketer, recalling how Dattajirao Gaekwad scouted young talents in the region. The former India Test captain, who made his debut in England in June 1952, earned the distinction of India’s oldest-living Test cricket in mid-2016 after the death of Deepak Shodhan, who was 87.
Dattaji was battling for life in the ICU of a Baroda hospital for the last 12 days, news agency PTI said.
“Under the shade of the banyan tree at the Motibag cricket ground, from his blue Maruti car, Indian captain D.K. Gaekwad sir tirelessly scouted young talent for Baroda cricket, shaping the future of our team. His absence will be deeply felt. A great loss for the cricketing community,” Irfan Pathan said in a social media post.
Dattajirao Gaekwad was the father of former India cricketer Anshuman Gaekwad, who played 40 Tests and 15 ODIs for India between 1975 and 1987.
Dattaji scored 350 runs in 11 matches, including a fifty in his Test career. He led India in four Tests during a series in England in 1959. Despite scoring over 1000 runs on the tour, Dattajirao was not able to translate the form into the Test series.
Nonetheless, Dattajirao Gaekwad was a prolific run-getter in first-class cricket for Baroda in a domestic career that spanned 17 years — from 1947 to 1964. Dattajirao scored 5788 runs in 110 matches, including 17 hundreds and 23 fifties. His highest score was 249 not out in first-class cricket.
The Indian Cricketers’ Association also mourned the death of Datta Gaekwad, who contributed immensely to the growth of Baroda cricket.
Dattajirao Gaikwad played his last Tes against Pakistan in Chennai in 1961.
