When Deepak Shodhan breathed his last at his residence here early on Monday, an era in Indian cricket also came to an end. At 87, he was the oldest living Test cricketer in the country.

One of the finest cricketers of the 1950s, Shodhan had been battling lung cancer and had not been keeping well for the past few days.

A stylish left-hander of his times, Shodhan is best remembered for his heroics while batting at number eight against Pakistan in a drawn Test at Eden Garden, Kolkata, in 1952-53, which was the first series between the two countries after separation.

The Amdavadi had replaced unwell captain Vijay Hazare. Unfortunately, when Shodhan walked in, India were staring down the barrel, with 179/6 on the board.

Pak bowlers Fazal Mahmood and Hussain Mahmood were in a no-mercy mood. Shodhan batted with Dattu Phadkar, GS Ramchand, wicketkeeper Prabir Sen and last man Ghulam Ahmed to guide the team to a 140-run lead having, earlier, bowled Pakistan out for 257.

"With seasoned campaigner Fazal breathing fire, a debutant was bound to get intimidated. Moreover, for a batsman, to play at number eight was very tough, especially with the capacity crowd at Eden Gardens watching.

However, he fought all odds and demonstrated his mental strength. And the rest is history," remarked Bhagirath Thakore, a former Gujarat pacer and close friend of Shodhan.

Twenty-year-old Shodhan then got picked for the tour to the West Indies, played in the opening Test at Port of Spain and made 45 and 11. Unfortunately, he suffered an injury and featured only in the fifth and the last Test at Kingston. He remained absent hurt in the first innings and then made 15 not out in the second, which was the last innings in his Test career.

The left-hander believed if not for politics, his Test career would have been longer. "Though technically, Vijay Hazare was the captain, Vinoo Mankad's opinion was considered final. He had a say in team meetings and Mankad was always against Gujarati players," Shodhan, had said in one of his interviews to dna.

Shodhan's first class career, however, was uninterrupted. In 43 first class games, he scored 1,802 runs, with 4 hundreds and 7 fifties, at just over 31 per innings, besides taking 73 wickets at an average of 34.05.

A former Gujarat bowler, Thakore played with Shodhan not only in Ranji Trophy but also in local Gordhandas Cup. According to Thakore, Shodhan was someone who justified the gentlemen's game.

"Though he came from a family of mill owners, Deepak never had any attitude. He was someone who called a spade a spade but never crossed his limits. He made his point in a very dignified way and personified the gentlemen's game at every juncture. He maintained the dignity of his family," added Thakore.

Shodhan was someone who didn't need an invitation to help a player improve his game. He was always there for cricket and cricketers.

"He was someone who passed his knowledge to juniors and helped them improve their performance," remarked Hitesh Patel, former joint secretary of Gujarat Cricket Association.

Former Test cricketer and BCCI curator Dhiraj Parsana termed Shodhan's death a personal loss. "He was quite senior to me, but we were good friends. We stayed in the same society and were part of a senior citizens' club. In fact, our Sunday gatherings used to start with his puns and satires on current topics. He had a great sense of humour," said Parsana, who is currently in Vizag for the IPL.

CAREER

M R HS Avg 100/50 Wkts BB

Test 3 181 110 60.3 1/0 - -

First class 43 1802 261 31.61 4/7 73 5/49

Did you know?

The century which Shodhan scored in Kolkata Test, was part of first Test series between the two countries

Shodhan was first Indian to hit a century on debut