Related Link : Polly Umrigar
Pahlanji Ratanji Umrigar better known as Polly Umrigar had passed away on Tuesday night following prolonged illness. The cause of his death was a lymph cancer which was diagnosed in June 2006. He passed away at the age of 80 years and 224 days.
Polly had made his Test Debut way back in 1948 against West Indies at the Brabourne Stadium in Bombay. He had played 59 Test Matches in an international career which lasted 14 years. He was a six-foot middle order batsman who could bowl some useful off breaks and at times medium pace with the new ball. He was a Record Maker for India! Some of his achievements include being the first ever Indian batsman to score a double century in Test Cricket. Umrigar had scored 223 against New Zealand at the Lal Bahadur Shastri Stadium in Hyderabad in 1955-56; incidentally he was the Skipper of the Indian team in that test match. He was also the star of India’s first ever Test victory which had come against England at Madras in 1951-52 with a 130 not out scored at no.7.
Umrigar had led India in 8 Tests with two wins and two losses along with four drawn. Only two Indian cricketers have so far been able to score a century and take five wickets in an innings, one of which is Vinoo Mankad while the other is Polly Umrigar who had achieved this against West Indies in Port of Spain in 1962. His last Test Match was against West Indies in that same series at the Sabina Park in Kingston, Jamaica. He retired with 3631 runs at a healthy average of 42.22 with 12 centuries and 14 fifties. He had played first class cricket for Parsees, Bombay and Gujarat. Post retirement he had served as the Chairman of the National Selectors between 1978 and 1982, had been the Manager of the Indian Team on three tours in the 70s. He was also in the BCCI as the Executive Secretary. Polly Umrigar was also instrumental in building the Wankhede Stadium in Mumbai.