The very acronym DDCA (Delhi & Districts Cricket Association) has come to mean a certain type of sports organization. Controversial, street smart, defiant but rarely dull.
The DDCA’s former secretary, Sunil Dev, was an embodiment of the organization he served from the 1970s till 2015. He was a voluble presence whether at his office, at matches or in the television studio lambasting an Indian performance. And he had friends and rivals in equal measure.
But now the man with a restless air has slipped into the big sleep. On Wednesday, Dev, who had diabetes, passed away at the age of 75. He is survived by his wife and children.
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Dev was also a part of several BCCI sub-committees in his career as a sports administrator.
When India won the inaugural T20 World Cup in 2007, setting off a T20 boom and paving the way for the IPL, Dev was the team’s administrative manager. He also performed that role on India’s tour of South Africa in 1996 and the 2014 tour of England.
Dev, who played one match in his short first-class career as a wicket-keeper batsman, was blessed with a gift of the gab. No wonder he had a radio show of cricket anecdotes in his later years.
But his outspokenness would sometimes divide people.
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There was no question about Dev’s power in the DDCA though. From 1990 till the 2000s, no Ranji Trophy or age-group team could be finalized without Dev’s approval.
Journalist James Astill, the Asia Editor of 'Economist', noted Dev’s amusing theatrics in his book ‘The Great Tamasha’. Dev would also regale reporters with anecdotes, such as how a 17-year-old Virat Kohli learnt driving on his SUV.
In 2009, Dev had resigned as a member of the pitch panel when an India-Sri Lanka game at the Ferozeshah Kotla was abandoned after the strip was deemed too dangerous and a ball had struck Tillakaratne Dilshan.
