Dilip Doshi 1947 - 2025 RIP Obituary

 

Dilip Doshi, outstanding spin bowler who helped India become a force in world cricket

His command of flight, subtle changes of pace and unerring accuracy could prove devastating

Telegraph Obituaries

Dilip Doshi, who has died aged 77, was one of the finest slow left-arm bowlers of his generation; he helped to establish India as a leading force in world cricket, winning 33 Test caps between 1979 and 1983 – and there might have been more had it not been for the celebrated “Indian spin quartet” of Bishan Singh Bedi, Erapalli Prasanna, Srinivas Venkataraghavan and Bhagwat Chandrasekhar, who played in 231 Tests between them.

No less at ease in English conditions, Doshi played for Nottinghamshire and Warwickshire as often as regulations on overseas players allowed. Slight of build, bespectacled and somewhat studious by nature, he had a deceptively casual approach to the wicket, and while he was never a big spinner of the ball, his command of flight, his subtle changes of pace and his unerring accuracy could be devastating.

Dilip Rasiklal Doshi was born on December 22 1947 in Rajkot, Gujarat, the eldest of four children of a cricket-loving business executive, Rasiklal Doshi and his wife, Sarojini. The boy spent his formative years in Calcutta, where he attended JJ Ajmera High School (now the Bhawanipur Gujarati Education Society School) and St Xavier’s College before studying law at the University of Calcutta.

He made his first-class debut for Vazir Sultan Colts against the State Bank of India at Hyderabad in 1968, and only the following year he was voted Indian Cricket Cricketer of the Year. He was a member of the Indian Universities side that toured Sri Lanka in 1970-71, and went on to play for Bengal in the Ranji Trophy; he was made captain in 1978.

But Doshi became increasingly unhappy at the lack of opportunities in Indian domestic cricket, and in 1972 he had unsuccessful trials with Sussex and Lancashire. The following year, while leading Meltham to championship success in the Huddersfield and District League, he made the first of 44 appearances for Nottinghamshire.

n 1976 he played Minor Counties cricket for Hertfordshire, and was Man of the Match in their Gillette Cup triumph over Essex. Three years later, playing for Northumberland, he took all 10 wickets against Darlington, then in 1981 he helped Warwickshire win the John Player League.

Doshi had made an impressive entrance into the Test arena in 1979 – albeit belatedly, thanks to the “Indian spin quartet” – taking six wickets for 103 runs and two for 64 against the Australian tourists in Madras, India’s best figures in the match. He took 27 wickets in all in the series, including eight in the final Test, and a further 18 wickets at 28 apiece in the series against Pakistan later that season.

He remained a more or less automatic selection for the next three years, doing well against England both home and away in 1981-82, claiming 35 wickets in nine Tests. In 1982, the great Sri Lankan Arjuna Ranatunga was his 100th Test victim.

When Pakistan toured in 1983 Doshi played in four of the five Tests before making way for the younger Maninder Singh – despite having taken six wickets, including five for 90 in the drawn first Test in Lahore. In all, in 33 Tests he had claimed 114 wickets, though he was never able to improve on his debut 6-103.

With the bat he was something of a rabbit, scoring 129 Test runs with a top score of 20. He also played in 15 one-day internationals, capturing 22 wickets. In total he played in 238 first-class games, taking 898 wickets, including a best return of 7-29 for Bengal against Assam in 1970. He accumulated 1,442 runs with a top score of 44.

Settling permanently in North London, this sharp-suited long-standing Rolling Stones fan ran the British arm of the family business, which traded in engineering and mining equipment. He regularly represented MCC and played for Walsall in the Birmingham League. His unflinching 1991 autobiography, Spin Punch, laid bare the tensions then at the heart of Indian cricket, being especially critical of the “self-aggrandising” BCCI, Indian cricket’s governing body.

On the last day of the recent Headingley Test, both England and India wore black armbands in his honour.

Dilip Doshi is survived by his wife Kalindi, and by their daughter Vishakha and son, Nayan, who followed his father into first-class cricket, playing for Surrey and Derbyshire.

Dilip Doshi, born December 22 1947, died June 23 2025

23/06

Dilip Doshi died earlier today, it is now widely reported in the media, age 77

From the Trent Bridge Old Player Archive

Indian spinner Dilip Doshi featured for Nottinghamshire during the 1970s before later playing Tests and One Day Internationals for his country.

Dilip Rasiklal Doshi was born in Rajkot on 22 December 1947.  Bowling slow left arm, he made his First-Class debut in India in 1968 and appeared regularly for Bengal in the Ranji Trophy and for East Zone in the Duleep Trophy.  His first experience of English cricket was for Sussex Second Eleven in 1972 and in the following year he joined Nottinghamshire. 

His appearances with Nottinghamshire were restricted by the prevailing regulations regarding overseas players in English cricket during the 1970s.  During the 1973 and 1974 seasons, Doshi played for Notts Seconds, taking 77 wickets in 17 games across the two seasons.  He made his English First-Class debut for Nottinghamshire against the West Indian touring team at Trent Bridge in 1973 but he was not qualified to play in County Championship matches and so his First-Class appearances were restricted to five games against the Universities and the international tourists. 

Doshi was not retained by the County for the 1975 season but he was re-signed for 1977 and 1978.  Changes to the rules on overseas players meant that counties could now field two such players and so Doshi appeared alongside South African Clive Rice in the Nottinghamshire side for much of 1977.  He made his Championship debut against Northamptonshire in May and played in 25 First-Class matches, claiming 82 wickets and was awarded his County cap. 

In 1978, his appearances were restricted following the signing of Richard Hadlee; but he managed 14 First-Class starts with 57 wickets, plus a further seven games in List-A cricket. Doshi was not re-engaged for the following season, with Rice and Hadlee taking the overseas berths and Eddie Hemmings and Mike Bore arriving from other counties to fill the spinner’s role. 

In four seasons with Notts, Doshi took 157 wickets in 44 First-Class outings.  His best Championship bowling came in July 1978 in the final county match played at the Ransome and Marles ground in Newark, when he took 6-67 in Worcestershire’s first innings and completed a 10 wicket haul in the match with 4-69 in the second. 

Doshi returned to domestic cricket in India and a year later he was called into the Indian team.  He might have played international cricket before but Bishan Singh Bedi had a firm grip on the left arm spinner’s role in the Indian side.  On Bedi’s retirement, Doshi was selected to play in all six Tests on home turf against Australia in 1979/80 and he became a fixture in the Indian side until 1983.  He played 33 Tests, taking 114 wickets and is one of just four bowlers in Test history who played their first Test after the age of 30, yet went on to take more than 100 wickets.  Doshi also played in 15 One Day Internationals for India. 

Dilip Doshi returned to English cricket as one of Warwickshire’s overseas stars in 1980 and 1981 and continued to play in India before retiring in 1986.  He subsequently became successful in business in his home country.  His son Nayan, born in Nottingham during Dilip’s stint with Nottinghamshire, was also a cricketer playing for Saurashtra and briefly for a couple of IPL franchises in India and appearing in English cricket for Surrey and Derbyshire.