Udaipur, March 13, 2025: In demeanor, attitude and character, both on and off the field, Syed Abid Ali was a true proponent of cricket as a gentleman's game. At a well lived age of 83, the September 1941 born Indian cricketer Syed Abid Ali bid farewell to us on March 12, 2025. After being inducted into the Indian cricket team in the 1967 series against Australia, Abid Ali played an important role in the side.

Syed Abid Ali was picked to play for the Hyderabad Schools in 1956, after impressing the selectors with his fielding. His first job with State Bank of India also came courtesy his performance in cricket. When the State Bank of India were picking their cricket team, Abid Ali was given a job at the bank. He began as a wicket keeper and then moved on to become a bowler.

In the 1967 series against Australia, the then Indian captain Mansoor Ali Pataudi dropped out due to injury. His exit gave an unexpected opportunity to Abid Ali, who went on to become the first Indian cricketer to take 6 wickets in that Test match, conceding just 55 runs. He performed well in the next few tests as well in that series.

His elegant approach and silent demeanor was apparent when in the 1971 Test series against England he sent back the first four English batsmen for a mere 19 runs before lunch leaving England with a measly 41 for 4 at the end of day one.

After his playing career got over, he took to coaching. His last Test for India was against the West Indies in 1974 and his last ODI was against New Zealand in 1975. He took to coaching Hyderabad in the late seventies before moving to California in 1980. He was called to coach the Maldives side in the late 1990s and also coached UAE from 2002-2005.

Source: Various Resources.