D. B. Deodhar

Dinkar Balwant Deodhar
Born January 14, 1892
Pune, India
Died August 24, 1993 (aged 101)
Pune, India
Nationality India India
Occupation Cricketer

Dinkar Balwant Deodhar (14 January 1892 24 August 1993) was an Indian cricketer, who played in first class cricket matches during 1911–1948.

Deodhar was born in Poona (now Pune), India. He was, by profession, a professor at S.P. College in Pune.

Popularly known as the Grand Old Man of Indian Cricket, he was an aggressive right-hand batsman and also a bowler known for his legbreaks. He captained the Maharashtra team in Ranji Trophy regional matches during 1939 – '41. In his first-class career, he played 81 matches, scoring 4522 runs at an average of 39.32 and a highest score of 246.

He has been the Vice President of the BCCI, the President of the Maharashtra Cricket Association, and also a national selector. The Deodhar Trophy, a limited overs inter-zonal cricket tournament played in India since 1973, is named after him. In 1996, the Indian Post issued a commemorative stamp in his honor. A statue of D.B. Deodhar was unveiled at Pune's Sahara cricket stadium in 2012.

Like Bill Ashdown, he is one of the few people known to have played first-class cricket both before the First World War and after the Second World War, having played in the Bombay Triangular in 1911 and the Ranji Trophy in 1946.

He was awarded the Padma Shri award in 1965 and the Padma Bhushan in 1991 by the Indian Government.

India's former National Badminton Champions Tara Deodhar, Sunder Deodhar, and Suman Deodhar are his daughters.

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