Archive · 9 Aug 2026
MCA Unveils Dilip Sardesai Gate Board at Wankhede Stadium
Dilip Sardesai was a very famous cricket player from India.
He was one of India's best batters ever.
He was the first Indian player to score 200 runs in one innings in a match played in another country.
He also scored 200 runs in a very difficult situation after his team had to follow on, which no Indian had done before.
He played 30 big matches for India and scored more than 2,000 runs in total.
Sadly, Sardesai passed away in 2007, but he is still loved and remembered.
On his 86th birthday, the cricket club that runs the game in Mumbai gave him a special honour.
They put up a new sign with his name at the big Wankhede Stadium in Mumbai.
His son Rajdeep and the rest of his family came to see the sign, along with cricket leaders.
Everyone said he was a true legend of Bombay cricket, and he will always be remembered.
The Mumbai Cricket Association (MCA) unveiled the 'Dilip Sardesai Gate No. 3 Board' at Wankhede Stadium in Mumbai on Saturday, August 8, 2026, his 86th birth anniversary.
Sardesai was the first Indian batter to score a double century overseas, making 212 against the West Indies at Kingston in 1971.
He was also the first Indian to score a double century after following on in a Test, hitting 200 not out against New Zealand in Mumbai in 1965.
His son Rajdeep Sardesai and family attended the ceremony alongside MCA president Ajinkya Naik and the association's office bearers and apex council members.
Sardesai, who died in 2007, played 30 Tests scoring 2,001 runs at an average of 39.23, with one double century and four centuries.
- Who
- Dilip Sardesai, the former Indian Test cricketer who died in 2007; his son, journalist Rajdeep Sardesai, and family; and Mumbai Cricket Association president Ajinkya Naik and officials.
- What
- The Mumbai Cricket Association unveiled the 'Dilip Sardesai Gate No. 3 Board' at Wankhede Stadium in his memory.
- When
- Saturday, August 8, 2026, his 86th birth anniversary.
- Where
- Wankhede Stadium in Mumbai (near NS Road, Marine Drive).
- Why
- To honour Sardesai's immense contributions to Mumbai and Indian cricket on the occasion of his birth anniversary.
- Event
- Unveiling of 'Dilip Sardesai Gate No. 3 Board'
- Date
- August 8, 2026 (86th birth anniversary)
- Venue
- Wankhede Stadium, Mumbai (near NS Road, Marine Drive)
- Born / Died
- August 8, 1940, Margao, Goa / June 2, 2007, Mumbai
- Test Career
- 30 Tests, 2,001 runs in 55 innings, average 39.23
- Centuries
- One double century and four centuries
- Historic Firsts
- First Indian overseas double century (212 vs West Indies, 1971); first Indian double century after following on (200 not out vs New Zealand, 1965); debut vs England (1961) and last Test vs England (1972)
- 1970-71 West Indies Tour
- 642 runs, including two centuries and a double hundred; cornerstone of India's historic series win