New Delhi: India's oldest cricketer Vasant N Raiji died on Saturday. He breathed his last in Mumbai at 2:30 am today. His son-in-law Sudarshan Nanavati has confirmed the death. In January this year, on the birthday of Vasant N Raiji celebrated his 100th birthday, Team India's legendary batsman Sachin Tendulkar and former Australia captain Steve Waugh reached with cake. After his death, the world's oldest cricket player is Alan Burgess of New Zealand (born May 1, 1920).
Raiji, a right-handed batsman, played 9 matches in the 1940s, scoring 277 runs. His high score was 68 runs. He made his debut for the Cricket Club of India in 1939. Two years later, he played the first match for Mumbai. Then the team played against Western India under the captaincy of Vijay Merchant. Apart from being a cricket historian, Raiji was also a chartered accountant. He played his first Test match at Bombay Gymkhana when he was 13 years old.
In January this year, Master Blaster Sachin Tendulkar went to meet him on his 100th birthday with Australian veteran batsman Steve Waugh. Tendulkar wrote on Twitter, "Happy 100th birthday Mr Vasant Raiji. Steve and I had a great time with you and heard some amazing cricket stories from the past. Thank you for taking forward the treasure of memories of our beloved game."
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