Former India skipper Dattajirao Gaekwad, who held the record of being the oldest-living Test cricketer in the country, passed away at the age of 95 at his residence in Baroda on Tuesday (February 13).

Dattajirao represented India in 11 Tests in a career that spanned 9 years. He also captained the national side in four matches.

Ex-India all-rounder Irfan Pathan took to social media to condole the demise of Dattajirao, recalling how the latter scouted young talents in the region.

Dattajirao Gaekwad, who made his debut in England in June 1952, became India's oldest-living Test cricket in mid-2016 after the death of Deepak Shodhan, who was 87.

According to news agency PTI, Dattaji was battling for life in the ICU of a Baroda hospital for the last 12 days.

"Under the shade of the banyan tree at the Motibag cricket ground, from his blue Maruti car, Indian captain D.K. Gaekwad sir tirelessly scouted young talent for Baroda cricket, shaping the future of our team. His absence will be deeply felt. A great loss for the cricketing community," Pathan wrote on social media platform X.

The Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) also mourned the death of Dattajirao Gaekwad and paid tribute to him with a heartfelt social media post.

“The BCCI expresses its profound grief at the passing away of Dattajirao Gaekwad, former India captain and India’s oldest Test cricketer. He played in 11 Tests and led the team during India’s Tour of England in 1959. Under his captaincy, Baroda also won the Ranji Trophy in the 1957-58 season, beating Services in the final. The Board expresses its heartfelt condolences to Gaekwad's family, friends, and admirers,” the board tweeted.

Dattajirao Gaekwad was the father of former India opener Anshuman Gaekwad, who played 40 Tests and 15 ODIs between 1975 and 1987.

Dattajirao scored 350 runs in 11 Tests, including a fifty in his Test career. He was a prolific run-getter in first-class cricket for Baroda, scoring 5788 runs in 110 matches, including 17 hundreds and 23 fifties. His highest score was 249 not out in first-class cricket.