Former Indian cricketer Abid Ali passed away at 83 years old. (FILE)Former Indian all-rounder Syed Abid Ali passed away at the age of 83 years on Wednesday in the United States. Abid has played 29 Test matches for India and has picked up 47 wickets. The Hyderbad-based cricketer was an agile fielder and was also quick between the wickets. In his debut Test match against Australia in Brisbane he picked up six wickets giving away 55 runs.
In the same series in Sydney, Abid Ali scored a couple of gritty half-centuries (78 and 81). The all-rounder was also known for scoring winning runs at the Oval in a famous win against England in 1971.
After 22 years of playing first-class cricket for his beloved Hyderabad and South Zone, apart from India, and coaching since 1978, Ali had the best credentials when the UAE came looking in 2001. He always believed in ‘‘taking a side at the bottom right to the top’’ — he’d already done that with the Andhra Pradesh team — and so jumped at the offer.
‘‘When I was with AP we initially had a tough time but, when I left, they were good enough to be in the Elite division.’’ The journey from Hyderabad to Dubai via San Francisco (where he’s lived since 1980) has certainly been eventful.
Ali also had the coaching stints in teams like the Maldives and the Andhra Ranji team in the past in addition to UAE.
It was back in 1996 that Abid Ali underwent bypass surgery. Somehow, news got out that he hadn’t come round and the TV channels picked it up. India were on tour in England and condolences flowed, especially from his former mates as Indian cricket mourned the loss of a ‘‘honest servant’’. One journalist even called, asking him if he was alive!
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