Delhi sports loses a fixture with the death of Prakash Bhandari

Prakash Bhandari, president of the Delhi Golf Society, who passed away in Delhi on Wednesday with a young Shubham Jaglan, is now making a name for himself in the sport. Image courtesy of FB.

By Rahul Banerji

In just over a week, Prakash Bhandari would have turned 90. However, on Wednesday, the former Indian cricketer, who later worked tirelessly to promote golf, breathed his last.

In his only Facebook post, Bhandari described himself as follows: “I played cricket for India, golf and bridge at international level. I am grateful to have a lovely family and good friends. I have worked with Tata Steel.”

Bhandari was a long-time member of the Delhi Golf Club and founder of the Delhi Golf Society. He was a cricketer of some repute and made his India debut in Pakistan as a teenager.

Bhandari played three Tests – one each against Pakistan, New Zealand and Australia – and 63 first-class matches, scoring 2,552 runs at an average of 32.71 with four centuries and a best of 227 for Delhi against Patiala in 1957-58.

As an off-break bowler, he took 122 first-class wickets, including a best of 7 for 54 at a handy average of 28.24, having played in the Ranji Trophy for Bengal and Bihar in addition to Delhi.

Bhandari built a reputation as an attacking batsman representing Delhi Schools and Delhi University, where he also captained the Rohington Baria inter-university championship of 1956-57.

Deep commitment

After cricket, Bhandari was a regular at the DGC and in his later years he became deeply involved in the growth and development of the sport at the grassroots level.

He, along with Ajit Haksar, judge Vikramjit Sen, Ashok Malik, Guli Juneja and Champika Sayal, founded the Delhi Golf Society with the aim of promoting and developing the game in his home state.

DGS initiatives include the long-running NCR Cup and the Delhi State Championship, among other initiatives to groom and develop junior talent as the governing body for golf in Delhi.

Bhandari served as the 25th President of the Indian Golf Union until November 2005.

His banker son Vivek was a promising golfer and played professionally for several years with some success until 2013.

Related