His enthusiasm and passion were saluted. He was full of courage, which he had given examples of many times. And who can forget that Test series, in which he saw his teammates getting injured in front of him, yet his resolve did not waver. He did not even take 12 hours to blow Pakistan's mind. We are talking about the legendary Indian opener Anshuman Gaekwad, who died on 31 July 2024 at the age of 71.

Anshuman Gaikwad lost the battle against blood cancer

Anshuman Gaikwad was suffering from blood cancer, for which he also got help from BCCI for treatment. But, this brave opener of the cricket field could not defeat death. Deadly cancer took him in its embrace. Anshuman Gaikwad was the trusted face of Indian cricket in the 70s and 80s. This trust was so strong that later he also came to be known as Sunil Gavaskar's 'right hand'.

The most fierce match was played in West Indies

The Test series for which Anshuman Gaekwad is most known was played on the soil of West Indies. The venue was Kingston and the year was 1976. Earlier, India had won the third Test of the series played in Port of Spain. The West Indies team of the 70s with its fierce players was deeply hurt by that defeat. In such a situation, Clive Lloyd's pace battery welcomed the Indian batsmen with short balls in the fourth Test played in Kingston. The Indians did not expect such an attack, yet they faced it bravely. Anshuman Gaekwad and Gavaskar added 136 runs for the opening wicket.

The companions stood firm on the injured, his eardrum was ruptured

When the West Indies bowlers realized that just short balls were not working, they started targeting the bodies of the Indian players. The result was that Gundappa Vishwanath got injured and had to go to the hospital. Even after seeing this happen in front of his eyes, Anshuman Gaekwad's intentions did not change. He continued his game. Meanwhile, a ball also hit his temple, which ruptured his eardrum, which required surgery. This was the condition of India's first innings in that Test.

In that match, the condition of the Indian team was so bad that its 3 important players - Gundappa Vishwanath, Anshuman Gaekwad and Brijesh Patel were not available to bat in the second innings. The then Indian captain Bishan Singh Bedi declared the innings and India had to lose that match. However, the 81 runs that Anshuman Gaekwad scored showing courage in the first innings of that Test are still discussed today.