HCA media box to be named after T.N. Pillay

Hyderabad Cricket Association (HCA) will name the existing media box at the Rajiv Gandhi Stadium (Uppal) after the former Sports Editor of Deccan Chronicle, T.N. Pillay, who passed away last week after a 60-year-stint with the paper.

“This is our tribute for his outstanding contribution to sports for so many decades,” said Purushotham Agarwal, Joint Secretary of HCA, at a condolence meeting organised by the AP Sports Journalists’ Association, Press Club of Hyderabad and Telangana English Journalists’ Association on Thursday.

Former Davis Cupper S.P. Misra recollected days when Pillay used to encourage young talent like him.

“The smile of Tony (as Pillay was popularly known) was unforgettable and also his attitude to help any needy sportsperson with his encouraging write-ups”.

Badminton coach S.M. Arif and Arjuna Awardee Mir Khasim Ali said that Pillay always used to think about improving standards in sports. Purnima Rau, former India women’s cricket captain, said that sports and women’s cricket in Hyderabad should ever be indebted to Pillay.

Former Mumbai and Hyderabad Ranji cricketer Vijay Mohan Raj and former Deccan Chronicle bureau chief M.P. Rabindranath also spoke.