Indian cricket great MS Dhoni’s mentor Deval Sahay passed away due to multi-organ failure in the early hours of Tuesday (November 24) in a hospital in Ranchi.

His funeral will take place at around 1 PM in Ranchi.  73-year-old Sahay is survived by his wife, a daughter and a son. His son Abhinav Akash Sahay confirmed the sad news to IANS.

Sahay, who was credited with preparing first turf pitches in Ranchi, was first admitted to a hospital due to breathing problems, contracting to COVID-19, though, he was discharged from the hospital on October 9, but was again admitted to a hospital when he developed complications.

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Akash told IANS: “After spending about 10 days at home, he was again admitted to a hospital when he developed complications. And today at around 3 a.m. he passed away.”

Meanwhile, Sahay was an Electrical Engineer by profession. He also served as the Chief Engineer at MECON – where former India captain Dhoni’s father also worked at and then worked at Central Coalfields Limited (CCL), from where he retired as Director (Personnel).

Noteworthy, Sahay hired a young Dhoni on stipend and provided him with the first opportunity to play on the turf pitches when he was at CCL and even his character was portrayed in the legendary cricketer’s biographical Bollywood film “MS Dhoni: The Untold Story”.