Former Indian cricketer Salim Durani passes away at 88

India's first Arjuna award-winning cricketer, Salim Durani, passed away on April 1 at the age of 88 in Gujarat's Jamnagar.

He was living with his younger brother, Jahangir Durani.

Durani had undergone proximal femoral nail surgery after he broke his thigh bone in a fall in January this year.

The Kabul-born Durani was a handy left-arm orthodox bowler, played 29 Tests, and played a key role in India defeating England 2-0 in the historic five-match Test series in 1961-62.

He picked up eight and 10 wickets in the team's victories at Calcutta and Madras.

It is worth mentioning that Durani was known for his dressing style and swagger and he scored one century and seven half-centuries in the 50 innings he played for the country, scoring a total of 1,202 runs.

He also played a significant role in helping India to victory against the West Indies in Port of Spain, dismissing both Clive Lloyd ad Sir Garfield Sobers.

Taking to the micro-blogging site former Indian cricketer VVS Laxman paid homage to Durani and said he was a man who hit sixes on public demand.

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