HYDERABAD, Oct 28: Ghulam Ahmed, cricketer and sagacious administrator, died here after a prolonged illness. He was 76.The lanky off-spinner from Hyderabad earned the title ``Symphony in Motion'' for his precision in bowling and was part of a formidable spin trio with Vinoo Mankad and Subash Gupte. He played an important role in India's first Test victory against England in 1952 at Madras. He took four wickets for 77 runs as India won by an innings.Ahmed, who played for India between 1948 and 1959, claimed 68 wickets in 22 Tests. He took five wickets in an innings twice and a 10-wicket tally in a match once.A graduate from Madras University, Ahmed made his debut against West Indies at Calcutta in 1948 and led India against the Caribbeans before hanging his boots in 1958.Off the field, Ahmed proved to be equally successful as administrator and became vice-president of Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) in 1986. He also had distinction of being the chairman of the selection committee whichpicked up the World Cup winning team in 1983. He lead India against New Zealand (1955) and West Indies (1958) and posted 106 for the last wicket with Hemu Adhikari at Delhi in 1954, contributing 50 runs to the partnership.Starting his Ranji Trophy career in 1939, Ahmed claimed 178 wickets for Hyderabad, leading the team between 1948-59.After retiring from active cricket, Ahmed gave the Moin-ud-Dowla tournament some significance and was associated with Hyderabad Cricket Association (HCA) and BCCI in various capacities till 1986.
