Umrigar

Mumbai/Calcutta: The cricketing fraternity paid glowing tributes to former India captain Polly Umrigar, describing him as a great player blessed with outstanding knowledge of the game. Umrigar’s death was not only a great loss for Indian cricket but also an “irreparable” loss to the game, cricketers past and present said. His last rites were performed at the Prsi Tower of Silence in south Mumbai on Wednesday.

Here are some of the reactions (in alphabetical order):

Jagmohan Dalmiya: His service to Indian cricket was unparalleled. Not only was he one of the finest allrounders that the country has ever produced, but had also served as manager, selector and administrator. Not all cricketers prove to be good administrators, but ‘Polly kaka’ was an exception.

Raj Singh Dungarpur: He was my friend, philosopher and guide. With his passing away a whole era of great cricketers of the 1940s, 50s and 60s has come to an end. I am talking about Gulabrai Ramchand, Dattu Phadkar, Umrigar, Subhash Gupte and Vijay Manjrekar. I have played against all of them and seen them.

Sunil Gavaskar: I learnt the nuances of the game from him. I can’t pinpoint on one particular thing. He once told me that I try and take my first run too early. He told me to take at least the first few runs safely. He had achieved so much, but never once spoke about his feats. The only time he spoke about his cricket was when discussing strategies on how to get people out. Even that was a great learning experience.

Ajit Wadekar: Whatever little I did well as captain for India was all due to the guidance and mentoring that I received from Umrigar who was my first Ranji Trophy captain. His death is a great loss to Indian cricket. I learned a lot from him. I learnt from him how important the first run of an innings was. To him the first run was as important as the 100th run. He used to murder the bowlers with his powerful hits and was difficult to dislodge once he settled down. (Agencies)