Former India cricketer VB Chandrasekhar commits suicide | Cricket - Hindustan Times
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Former India cricketer VB Chandrasekhar commits suicide

Hindustan Times, Chennai | ByMC Rajan
Aug 16, 2019 06:41 PM IST

Of late, Chandrasekhar was very depressed over financial losses incurred on account of running the VB Kanchi Veerans, a team in the Tamil Nadu Premier League, modelled on the line of the IPL.

Faced with mounting debt, former India opener and Tamil Nadu batsman VB Chandrasekhar (57), committed suicide by hanging at his Mylapore residence in Chennai on Thursday night. The funeral will take place on Saturday, family sources said. Proprietor of the T20 team, VB Kanchi Veerans of the Tamil Nadu Premier League (TNPL), modeled on the Indian Premier League, he had borrowed nearly 4 crore from a private bank and invested around 3 crore on the team, police said after initial investigations.

File photo of former India and Tamil Nadu batsman VB Chandrasekhar who passed away aged 57.(Twitter/ANI)
File photo of former India and Tamil Nadu batsman VB Chandrasekhar who passed away aged 57.(Twitter/ANI)

“The autopsy report had confirmed it as death by hanging and the body has been handed over to the family,” A Jayalakshmi, Deputy Commissioner of Police Mylapore, said. Earlier, it was said that he had died of a massive cardiac arrest.After retirement from professional cricket, he started a cricket coaching academy with a sprawling ground in Kelambakkam on the city outskirts, where first class matches are being held regularly for over 20 years. He was also with the CSK and is said to have been instrumental in getting MS Dhoni into the team.

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“He had incurred heavy losses in running the cricket team, Kanchi Veerans in the absence of any sponsor since its inception four years ago. Further, the team reached the play-off stage only this year but was eliminated after losing a crucial match. And recently, the bank from which he had borrowed money by pledging his house as surety, had sent a recovery notice. Ever since, he was under great mental stress,” said Jayalakshmi.

In a complaint to the police, Chandrasekhar’s wife, Sowmya, had maintained that he was depressed over the financial losses and the debt burden, the Deputy Commissioner added.

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Though drafted on the panel of commentators for the TNPL match on Thursday, he had informed about his ‘inability’ to come citing indisposition. And that was his last conversation on mobile, the police officer said.

After having tea with the family members in the evening, he went to his room upstairs but didn’t turn up for a long time. When the family members knocked at his door, it was locked inside and there was no response. On opening the window, the family members were shocked to see him hanging on the ceiling fan with his own dhoti.

“The family members broke opened the door, attempted at resuscitation and rushed him in an ambulance to a private hospital nearby, where he was declared dead on arrival. Later, the family informed the police,” the police officer explained adding that Chandrasekhar had not left any suicide note. The body was then shifted to Royapettah Government Hospital for post-mortem.

Police officials, who visited the house in Mylapore recovered Chandrasekar’s mobile phone and the notice from the bank.

“Preliminary inquiry points to death due to mounting financial troubles. Further investigations on,” Jayalakshmi said.

The police are planning to quiz the former cricketer’s auditor as well.

The dashing opener, who is only six days short of his 58th birthday, is survived by his wife and two daughters.

The BCCI and the cricketing fraternity have expressed shock at the sudden demise of Chandrasekhar and conveyed their condolences.

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