Former India Cricketer VB Chandrasekhar Passes Away; Raina, Harbhajan Condole Demise

The former Indian opener and national selector died in Chennai and is survived by his wife and two daughters.

Image tweeted by @vbcsekar

New Delhi: In a tragic incident, former Indian cricketer VB Chandrasekhar passed away on Thursday following a massive cardiac arrest, six days ahead of his 58^th birthday. The former Indian opener and national selector died in Chennai and is survived by his wife and two daughters. He played 7 ODIs between 1988 and 1990, scoring only 88 runs, but at the domestic level he was prolific for a few seasons, aggregating 4999 runs in 81 games with a highest score of 237 not out. Indian cricket stars including  Suresh Raina, Harbhajan Singh and Akash Chopra  condoled the death of Chandrasekhar. "Extremely sad & shocked to hear about the passing away of VB Chandrasekhar sir. His consistent efforts made it possible to set the right foundation of the CSK team. He always encouraged & believed in us since very beginning. My deepest condolences to the family," Raina tweeted.

Extremely sad & shocked to hear about the passing away of VB Chandrasekhar sir. His consistent efforts made it possible to set the right foundation of the CSK team. He always encouraged & believed in us since very beginning. My deepest condolences to the family. pic.twitter.com/g2mtq8wRos

— Suresh Raina🇮🇳 (@ImRaina) August 15, 2019

"Very shocking to hear VB Chandrashekhar indian cricketer is no more.. very sad news .. very young to go.. rest in peace VB.. Big lose. condolences to the family," Harbhajan wrote on his twitter handle.

Very shocking to hear VB Chandrashekhar indian cricketer is no more.. very sad news .. very young to go.. rest in peace VB.. Big lose ☹️ condolences to the family 🙏🙏 @CSKFansOfficial @ChennaiIPL @BCCI

— Harbhajan Turbanator (@harbhajan_singh) August 15, 2019

Former India opener Aakash Chopra expressed shock at Chandrasekhar's death. "Shocked to hear about the untimely demise of V B Chandrasekhar. Was only 57. Went away too soon. Thoughts with the family....heartfelt condolences. R.I.P.," he tweeted.

Very shocking to hear VB Chandrashekhar indian cricketer is no more.. very sad news .. very young to go.. rest in peace VB.. Big lose ☹️ condolences to the family 🙏🙏 @CSKFansOfficial @ChennaiIPL @BCCI

— Harbhajan Turbanator (@harbhajan_singh) August 15, 2019

A qualified engineer, Chandrasekhar made his first-class debut at the age of 25 and played in a formidable Tamil Nadu team, which comprised WV Raman, Diwakar Vasu, Laxman Sivaramakrishnan and Bharath Arun. Till a few seasons back, he held the record for the fastest hundred in the Ranji Trophy - a 56-ball ton for Tamil Nadu against Rest of India in an Irani Cup game - that brought him into national reckoning. Unfortunately, his technique was found out during a tri-series in New Zealand in 1990, ensuring that he never played for India again. An astute reader of the game, he was later a national selector when Greg Chappell was the coach and in his later years also did commentary in domestic cricket. "I have done two years of commentary with him and I can vouch that I became better simply interacting with him. His game reading, grip on technical aspects was mind blowing and it is memory I would always cherish," former India stumper Deep Dasgupta was quoted as saying by news agency PTI. "His passion was unmatched and I know he used to spend a lot from his own pocket in a running a team in the Tamil Nadu Premier League (TNPL) known as VB Kanchi Veerans. It will take some time for this tragic news to sink in," said Dasgupta. (with inputs from PTI)