Condoling the death of his predecessor Raj Singh Dungarpur here today, cricket board president Shashank Manohar termed it as a great loss for the game in the country.
"It is a great loss to Indian cricket. Rajbhai served Indian cricket diligently and with distinction, in several capacities. He was a self-effacing individual who always put the sport, and Indian cricket in particular, above everything else," Manohar said in a statement.
BCCI secretary N Srinivasan recalled how Raj Singh, as the chief selector, picked champion batsman Sachin Tendulkar at the tender age of 16 on the tough tour of Pakistan in 1989-90.
"He had several stints as national selector, and headed the All-India Selection Committee in the late 1980s. As chairman, he was instrumental in defying skeptics and picking a 16-year-old boy for India's tour of Pakistan in 1989-90. The boy has since become a legend," the BCCI secretary said.
"Rajbhai, as he was affectionately addressed by the cricketing community, was a right-arm fast-medium bowler who represented and then led Rajasthan successfully in the Ranji Trophy in the 1960s. He dedicated his post-retirement life to cricket administration. Among the many Indian teams he managed was the side that won a Test series in England in 1986," Srinivasan said.
