TNI Bureau: Famous former Indian left-arm spinner Bishan Singh Bedi died today at the age of 77 after a prolonged illness.
Bishan Singh Bedi, who was an active cricketer from 1967 to 1979, represented India in 67 Tests and taken 266 wickets. He also has played 10 ODIs and bagged a total of 7 wickets.
Bedi is widely considered as one of the finest spinners India have had. He was also among the architects of India’s spin bowling revolution.
Along with Erapalli Prasanna, BS Chandrasekhar, and S. Venkataraghavan, Bedi played an important role in India’s first-ever ODI victory.
He also played a crucial role with his 12-8-6-1 figure to hold the East Africa to 120 runs in 1975 World Cup.
In domestic cricket, Bedi primarily played for the Delhi team. After retirement, he worked as a coach and mentor for several budding Indian cricketers.
Bedi also worked as a commentator and pundit. Besides, he was briefly the manager of the Indian cricket team in 1990 during tours of New Zealand and England.
Moreover, he was also a national selector and mentor to many talented spinners like Maninder Singh and Murali Kartik, who all swore by his technical insight.
Meanwhile, several cricketers paid tribute to the legendary spinner.