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Dattajirao Gaekwad (1928-2024), also known as Datta Gaekwad, , was an Indian cricketer, who played 11 Tests for India between 1952 and 1961. He captained the Indian team during the Indian cricket team’s 1959 tour of England. He was one of the highest run-getters in first-class cricket for Baroda in his domestic career, spanning 17 years, from 1947 to 1964. He is known for winning the Ranji Trophy for Baroda in his first year as the captain in 1957-58. On 13 February 2024, he died in Vadodara due to age-related ailments.
Wiki/Biography
Dattajirao Krishnarao Gaekwad was born on Saturday, 27 October 1928 (age 95 years; at the time of death) in Vadodara, British India (now Baroda, Gujarat, India). His zodiac sign was Scorpio. He had distant family ties to the royal family of Baroda. His father was one of the brothers of Maharaja Sayajirao Gaekwad III and served in the Baroda state army. After the death of Sayajirao in 1939, his grandson Pratap Singh Rao Gaekwad became the Maharaja. At the age of 11, Dattajirao Gaekwad was invited to live at Laxmi Vilas Palace in Baroda to be a companion to Prince Fateh Singh Rao Gaekwad. The prince was two years younger than Dattajirao. He continued to stay at the palace till his marriage in 1951. A visionary, Pratap Singh Rao converted the palace’s Moti Bagh into a cricket ground. Soon, it evolved as a hub of cricket, where Dattajirao developed a passion for cricket. There, he met the well-known cricketer C. S. Nayudu and started training under him when he was 12. In an interview, Gaekwad recalled training under Nayudu and said,
In 1948, CS Nayudu, brother of former India captain CK Nayudu, came to Baroda looking for a job; the Maharaja of Baroda had called him. When I was about 12 years old, CS Nayudu was my coach. He launched under-14 and under-16 tournaments in Baroda. He was a well-known leg-spin-googly bowler and I learnt a lot from him. I started bowling leg-spin and googly copying his style.”
He did his schooling at Maharani Chimnabai High School, Vadodara. From school cricket, he moved on to inter-university cricket, playing for Bombay University for two years. When Maharaja Sayajirao University formed its cricket team, Gaekwad became its first captain.
An old picture of Dattajirao Gaekwad
Physical Appearance
Height (approx.): 5′ 10″
Hair Colour: Grey
Eye Colour: Black
Family & Ethnicity
Dattajirao Gaekwad belonged to a Marathi family.
Parents & Siblings
His father’s name is Krishnarao Gaekwad.
Wife & Children
In 1951, Dattajirao Gaekwad got married to Ushadevi. Together, they had three daughters, Geeta, Sunetra, and Nandini, and a son, Anshuman Gaekwad. Anshuman is also a former cricketer who played 40 Tests from the 1970s to the ’80s.
Dattajirao Gaekwad with his son and wife
Dattajirao Gaekwad with his son Anshuman Gaekwad
Others
His grandson, Shatrunjay Gaekwad, is also a cricketer who represents Baroda in the Ranji Trophy.
Dattajirao Gaekwad with his grandson Shatrunjay Gaekwad
Signature/Autograph
Postal envelope autographed by Dattajirao Gaekwad, created by the Baroda Cricket Association in his honour
Career
In the 1960s, Gaekwad served as a joint secretary at the Baroda Cricket Association (BCA).
As a Cricketer
Domestic
Dattajirao Gaekwad made his first-class debut in the 1946-47 season. His performance in the inter-university matches led to his selection in Baroda’s Ranji team in the 1947-48 season. Dattaji’s maiden century came in the 1949-50 season when he scored 108 at the Polo Ground in Baroda against the Bombay side. Gaekwad played for Baroda in the Ranji Trophy till 1961 during which he scored 3139 runs, which included 14 centuries. During those days, Baroda had several players in the Indian team like Vijay Hazare, Gul Mohammad, Chandu Borde, Sadu Shinde, and Amir Elahi among others. As a captain, he led Baroda to win its maiden Ranji Trophy title in nine years in 1957-58, scoring a century in the final against Services at Moti Bagh Stadium in Baroda. Meanwhile, Vijay Hazare scored 203 in the match.
Baroda Cricket Association commemorated Dattajirao Gaekwad’s 92nd birthday by inscribing his picture with the Ranji Trophy on a glass frame
During the season, Gaekwad scored 218 against the defending champions Bombay. His highest was a 249 not out against Maharashtra in the 1959-60 season. Unfortunately, he wasn’t able to translate his success in domestic cricket to the Test matches.
International
He was named in India’s squad for a tour of England in 1952. On 5 June 1952, he made his test debut against England at Headingley in Leeds. Despite having no prior experience as an opening batsman, he opened for India during the tour. In the second innings of the Test, he was one of four players to be dismissed without scoring any runs. He got a chance to play for India in the last test against the West Indies in 1958-59. He scored 52 runs in the second innings, the only Test fifty of his career which led India to end the game in a draw. Gaekwad was appointed the captain of the Indian team on the tour of England in 1959.
Polly Umrigar, Datta Gaekwad, Denis Compton and Vijay Manjrekar at the British Sportsman’s Luncheon at the Savoy, London on 21 April 1959
He played 23 of the 33 first-class matches. He was one of the team’s leading scorers with 1174 runs (34.52) on the tour but didn’t perform well in the Tests. India lost all five Tests. Gaekwad played in four of the five Tests but scored only 128 runs at an average of 16.00. His final international game was against Pakistan in Chennai in 1961.
An old picture of Dattajirao Krishnarao Gaekwad
As a Coach
BCCI appointed him a coach in Baroda. He coached boys of various age groups in Baroda till 2000. In 1977-78, Gaekwad coached Ajit Lele, son of late BCCI and BCA secretary JY Lele. At that time, Ajit Lele was playing under-19 cricket.
Death
On 13 February 2024, after battling for life for 12 days, Dattajirao Gaekwad died in Vadodara due to age-related ailments.
Facts/Trivia
- He was a right-hand batter and a right-arm leg spin bowler.
- Despite Dattaji’s remarkable achievements in domestic cricket, he was often outshone by Vijay Hazare, who is considered the finest Indian batsman of the 1950s. Whenever Dattaji hit a century in the Ranji final, Hazare surpassed him with a double century. In the 50s, Dattaji was a nightmare for the Bombay teams. He once scored a double century against it, but it was Hazare’s 126 that was remembered more by the older generation.
- He became India’s oldest living Test cricketer in 2016 after the death of former batter Deepak Shodhan at the age of 87 in Ahmedabad.
- He was fondly called DK Sir in the cricket community.
- It is believed that he was elevated to the position of captain during India’s tour of England in 1959 due to nepotism. Apparently, Dattajirao was close to the erstwhile Maharaja of Vadodara Fatehsingh Gaekwad, who was also the manager of the national team. Fateh Singh Gaekwad was also Dattajirao ‘s patron since he was 11 years old.
- In 1959, after he was selected as captain for India’s tour of England, he contracted typhoid. Although he was never fully fit during the tour, he played in 23 of the 33 first-class matches and was one of the team’s leading scorers, with 1174 runs at an average of 34.52.
- Having close family ties with the royal family of Baroda, Dattajirao once served as the Deputy Comptroller for the state of Baroda.
- In 2020, the postal department paid tribute to Gaekwad by issuing a ‘Special Cover’ in his honour on the occasion of his 92nd birthday. Titled “Dedicated to Shri DK Gaekwad”, the publication featured Gaekwad’s photo at its centre, surrounded by images of other notable figures from Baroda cricket. It also featured the pictures of three office-bearers, Fatehsingrao Gaekwad, Chirayu Amin, and Jaywant Lele, who served at the BCCI for more than five years.
The postal cover released by the postal department in 2020 in honour of Dattajirao Gaekwad on the occasion of his 92nd birthday
- In 2024, Irfan Pathan paid tribute to Gaekwad via a heartfelt tweet in which he said that Gaekwad used to tirelessly scout young talent for Baroda cricket sitting in his blue Maruti car at the Motibag cricket ground.