Salim Durani, the debonair India cricketer of the 1960s with a movie star looks, a puckish sense of humour, and a penchant for hitting monstrous sixes on demand, died on Sunday (2nd April 2023). He was 88.
* His death was confirmed by sources close to the family. He had been living with his younger brother, Jahangir Durani, in Jamnagar, Gujarat.
* Durani had undergone a proximal femoral nail surgery after he broke his thigh bone in a fall in January this year.
* The Kabul-born Durani, who packed a punch with his bat and was also a handy left-arm orthodox bowler, played 29 Tests and was instrumental in India defeating England 2-0 in the historic five-match Test series in 1961-62, picking up eight and 10 wickets in the team's victories at Calcutta and Madras.
* In the era of 1960-1973, Durani marked his presence with his pure ability to send the ball flying into the stands. He was an allrounder and had a unique ability to finish off the game either with the bat or with the ball. He was a part of India's successful victory against England in 1961-62.
* Durani capped off an impressive display by picking up eight wickets against the English team.
* In his illustrious career, Durani also picked up the wickets of one of the best cricketers like Clive Lloyd and Gary Sobers.
* With his slow left-arm orthodox bowling style Durani certainly knew how to increase the intensity in a game and add a touch of entertainment for the fans as well.
* The former Indian cricketer featured in 29 Test matches for team India and scored 1,202 runs with an average of 25.04. He also had a century and seven half-centuries in his career.
* With the ball, Durani picked up 75 wickets and 6/73 remained his best bowling figure in an inning. Once, when he was dropped for a test series, fans chanted slogans like "No Durrani, no Test."
* Durani, known for his fine dressing style and swagger, scored just one century though he had seven fifties in the 50 innings he played for the country, scoring 1,202 runs.
Born : 11 December 1934
Died : 2 April 2023.
Source : Mint
