Former India allrounder Salim Durani has died aged 88. He was living with his brother Jahangir Durani in Jamnagar, Gujarat, according to PTI.
Durani had undergone a proximal femoral nail surgery after he broke his thigh bone in a fall in January this year.
An aggressive left-handed batter and a left-arm spinner, Durani played 29 Tests, scoring 1202 runs and taking 75 wickets.
He was best remembered for that magical spell that helped India to their first Test win in the West Indies in 1971, which is also remembered for Sunil Gavaskar’s Test debut. In the space of a few balls, Durani had dismissed Clive Lloyd and Garry Sobers – the latter for a duck – at a crucial time in the second innings in Port of Spain for India’s seven-wicket win. Durani conceded just 21 runs in the 17 overs he bowled.
Ten years before this Test, he bowled India to victory against England in 1961-62, successively taking eight and ten wickets in Kolkata and Chennai respectively. He was the highest wicket-taker in the series with 23 scalps from nine innings, in what was only his second Test series.
Born in Kabul in 1934, Durani had created a special rapport with the spectators with his aggressive style of batting and acquired the reputation of hitting sixes on demand. He scored one Test century, against West Indies in Port of Spain in 1962. He played his last Test in February 1973 against England at the Brabourne Stadium, where he had also made his debut in 1960, and finished with a batting average of 25.04.
Source: ESPN Crickinfo