“Vilasrao Deshmukh had a vision for Mumbai cricket; he was keen to emulate Sharad Pawar by creating new infrastructure, but he is not with us anymore. He was associated with every milestone year of the Wankhede Stadium, including its redevelopment before the 2011 ICC World Cup,” said Prof. Ratnakar Shetty, senior vice-president, Mumbai Cricket Association.
Mr. Deshmukh, 67, who died in Chennai on Tuesday, was vice-president of the MCA from 2009 to 2011. He defeated former India captain Dilip Vengsarkar to become president for a two-year term (2011-13) in July 2011. He is the second president — after Sesharao Wankhede — to die in office.
Prof. Shetty also said that it was Deshmukh who raised the issue of the substantial one-time payment to be extended to widows of cricketers at the BCCI Working Committee meeting.
