Amritsar Govindsingh Milkha Singh () (31 December 1941 10 November 2017) was an Indian

Test cricket Test cricket is a Forms of cricket, format of the sport of cricket, considered the game’s most prestigious and traditional form. Often referred to as the "ultimate test" of a cricketer's skill, endurance, and temperament, it is a format of i ...

er. Milkha Singh was a left-handed batsman and an occasional right arm medium pace bowler. He came from a famous cricketing family which also produced

A. G. Ram Singh Amritsar Govindsingh Ram Singh (14 July 1910 – 11 August 1999) was an Indian first-class cricketer. An allrounder, he bowled slow left-arm orthodox and was a left-handed middle order batsman. His sons A. G. Kripal Singh and A. G. Milkha Sing ...

and his more successful brother A. G. Kripal Singh. He was a brilliant schoolboy cricketer and his exploits led to a first-class debut at the age of 16. He represented South Zone Schools in the interzonal

Cooch Behar Trophy The Cooch Behar Trophy is India's national four-day cricket tournament for under-19 players. It has been held annually since the 1945–46 season. It is run by the Board of Control for Cricket in India. History The trophy was donated by, and na ...

and scored 114 in the final against West Zone. This led to the vice captaincy of the Indian Schools that toured

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that year. Milkha, who studied at

Loyola College, Chennai Loyola College is a government aided private Catholic higher education institution run by the Society of Jesus in Chennai, Tamil Nadu, India. It was founded in 1925 by the France, French Jesuits, Jesuit priest, Francis Bertram, along with other ...

, was twice voted the best collegiate cricketer and represented university and state. He played four

Test matches Test match in some sports refers to a sporting contest between national representative teams and may refer to: * Test cricket * Indoor cricket, Test match (indoor cricket) * Test match (rugby union) * Test match (rugby league) * Test match (associa ...

. He made his debut in 1959–60 against the

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, toured Pakistan in 1960-61 and played one Test against

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in 1961–62. In the Test against England, the Indian team also included A.G. Kripal Singh and

Vaman Kumar Vaman Viswanath Kumar , often known as V. V. Kumar (born 22 June 1935) is a former Indian cricketer who played in two Test matches in 1961. On his debut he took five wickets in the first innings against Pakistan in Delhi in 1961. Kumar played f ...

, the only instance when three

Tamil Nadu Tamil Nadu (; , TN) is the southernmost States and union territories of India, state of India. The List of states and union territories of India by area, tenth largest Indian state by area and the List of states and union territories of Indi ...

players appeared in an Indian side. Milkha was only 19 when he played his last Test. He scored more than 2,000 runs for Tamil Nadu in the

Ranji Trophy The Ranji Trophy is a premier domestic first-class cricket championship played in India and organized annually by the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI). The teams representing regional and state cricket associations participate. BCCI ...

and was the first player to score a

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in the

Duleep Trophy The Duleep Trophy, is a domestic First Class Cricket competition played in India. Named after former cricketer Duleepsinhji, the competition has largely been contested by teams representing various geographical zones of India since the first ed ...

References

Notes

* V. Ramnarayan, ''Mosquitos and other Jolly Rovers''

External links

* 1941 births 2017 deaths Indian cricketers India Test cricketers Indian Universities cricketers Indian Starlets cricketers Loyola College, Chennai alumni South Zone cricketers State Bank of India cricketers Tamil Nadu cricketers Cricketers from Chennai {{India-cricket-bio-stub