Former BCCI President Raj Singh Dungarpur died here on Saturday following protracted illness.
Affectionately called as ‘Rajbhai’ in the cricket fraternity, the 73-year-old Dungarpur, who was president of the Cricket Board for three years in the late 1990s, was suffering from Alzheimer’s disease.
A bachelor from the Dungarpur royal family of Rajasthan, he was also a former first class cricketer, a former India team manager and ex-chairman of the senior selection panel.
A former President of the Cricket Club of India for 13 years before he took ill last year, Dungarpur died at his residence this morning.
The funeral will be held in Dungarpur on Sunday, according to sources close to him.
Born on December 19, 1935 as the youngest son of Maharawal Lakshman Singhji, the ruler of Dungarpur, he played Ranji Trophy for Rajasthan for 16 years, between 1955 and 1971, as a medium-fast bowler.
The gangling bowler captured 206 wickets in 86 matches and rubbed shoulders with stalwarts like Vijay Manjrekar, Hanumant Singh and Salim Durrani. But he never played for the country in Tests.
He studied at the Daly College in Indore and got close to former India skipper C K Nayudu whom he held in very high esteem till his death. His elder brothers — Jaisinghji and Mahipalsinghji — are living in Rajasthan.
Dungarpur was also a close friend of melody queen Lata Mangeshkar.
