Polly Umrigar dies of cancer at 80

FORMER INDIAN cricket captain Polly Umrigar died here on Tuesday of cancer, his family said. He was 80.

FORMER INDIAN cricket captain Polly Umrigar died here on Tuesday of cancer, his family said. He was 80.

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A batsman of repute, Umrigar played 59 Tests between 1948 and 1962. He scored 3631 runs and hit 12 hundreds. He was the first to score more than ten centuries, a record which stood for long in his name till it was broken by a man whose batting he admired ardently — Sunil Gavaskar.

He led India in eight Tests, winning two and losing two. Umrigar was the first Indian to hit a Test double century. He is survived by his wife, two sons and a daughter. . The funeral is scheduled to be held tomorrow.