This is a collection of articles archived for the excellence of their content. Additional information may please be sent as messages to the Facebook community, Indpaedia.com. All information used will be gratefully acknowledged in your name.

A brief biography

Captain For The Ages: First To Lead India To Series Wins In England, WI, August 16, 2018: The Times of India

Skipper Ajit Wadekar and B S Chandrasekhar wave to cheering crowds at the Oval after India won the Test series against England on August 24th, 1971
From: Captain For The Ages: First To Lead India To Series Wins In England, WI, August 16, 2018: The Times of India

The 77-year-old served Indian cricket in various capacities. It was during his tenure as captain that India won their first-ever Test series in West Indies and England in 1971. He is survived by wife Rekha and a son and a daughter who have both settled down abroad.

The left-handed Wadekar, who made his debut in 1966 in Mumbai against West Indies, went on to play 31 Tests, scoring one hundred and 14 fifties before calling it quits in 1974. Interestingly, it was former India captain Vijay Merchant’s casting vote as chairman of the selection committee which ended MAK Pataudi’s long reign as India captain and handed over the reins to Wadekar in January 1971.

After being away from the sport for some time, Wadekar was appointed as the coach for India’s historic tour of South Africa in 1992. He formed a formidable partnership with captain Mohammad Azharuddin especially at home and later played an instrumental role in turning Sachin Tendulkar’s career by making the batting maestro open the innings in One-Day Internationals during the tour of New Zealand in 1994.

Tendulkar never looked back after that and went on to corner all batting records and emerged as one of the game’s greatest ever batsmen. Azharuddin told TOI that Wadekar’s demise was a personal loss for him. “He was an outstanding player and captain and one of the best human beings.”

Wadekar quit as the coach after India exited the 1996 World Cup at the semifinal stage after losing to Sri Lanka in Kolkata. He later also served as the chairman of selectors, and briefly dabbled in cricket administration as he took on the might of Sharad Pawar and contested the Mumbai Cricket Association polls for president in 2001. “The sun goes down on another legend and my all-time favourite cricketer. By far he was one of the most popular cricketers of the 60s. His contribution to Mumbai and India as a captain and as a stylish batsman, is huge. His team of 1971 was mainly responsible to set a winning trend for Indian cricket abroad,” former India skipper Dilip Vengsarkar, who was a neighbour of Wadekar, said.

Former India skipper Sourav Ganguly too expressed shock. “I will miss him very much. He was very dear to me. It's a sad day.” Legendary left-arm-spinner Bishan Singh Bedi, who was part of Wadekar’s twin triumphs in England and West Indies, tweeted, “Very sad news of Ajit Wadekar passing away. The only Indian captain to win three series in a row, two away and one at home. Ajit Wadekar was a good contemporary.”