Only a few days ago, Kapil Dev had tried to raise the spirits of Anshuman Gaekwad via a video message. He urged his former India teammate to get well soon, so that the two could sit for a drink in the near future. Kapil and almost all his 1983 World Cup-winning teammates decided to donate their three months of pension amount from the cricket board for Gaekwad’s treatment, who was battling cancer.
The BCCI also released Rs 1 crore for the former India opener. All proved to be futile. Gaekwad stood firm, as former West Indies captain Clive Lloyd oversaw India’s ‘bloodbath’ in Jamaica. He took blows but never ran away, until a bouncer sent him to hospital. Cancer was a lot more deadly.
He died following a long battle with blood cancer on Wednesday. Until last month, he underwent treatment in London before returning to his native city of Vadodara, earlier known as Baroda. He was 71.
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Gaekwad played 40 Tests and scored 1,985 runs, including two centuries and 10 half-centuries. A double hundred, 201, against Pakistan in Jalandhar was his highest. In 15 ODIs, he scored 269 runs. He personified courage.
He also served as a national selector and then became the Indian team’s head coach. Later, he assumed the role of the president of the Indian Cricketers’ Association.
His teammates liked him. Those who played under him respected Gaekwad. “RIP Anshu bhai… terrible, terrible news,” former India captain Sourav Ganguly paid his tribute via a post on X.
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