Sudhir Naik, a former cricketer for India, died away on Wednesday in Mumbai. He was 78 years old and is survived by a daughter who lives in Australia.
Naik was recovering from a head injury he sustained after falling at home a few weeks ago at the Hinduja Hospital in Mumbai.
In the 1970s, Naik participated in two ODIs and three Tests for his nation. The soft-spoken Naik, an opening batsman, made 141 runs in six innings, with his best score coming in the second innings of his debut Test against England in Birmingham in 1974. His final Test was played against the West Indies at home in 1975 at Eden Gardens.
In 1971, when most Mumbai veterans, including Sunil Gavaskar and Ajit Wadekar, participated in the historic away series victory against the West Indies, Naik, a previous Mumbai captain, led the team to the Ranji Trophy. For a long period, Naik served as the Wankhede Stadium’s chief curator.
