Former Karnataka all-rounder B Vijayakrishna dies at 71 after heart attack

BENGALURU: Former Karnataka cricketer B Vijayakrishna breathed his last on Thursday morning following a heart attack. He was 71. The all-rounder, who claimed 194 wickets in 80 first class matches, brought accolades for Karnataka in domestic cricket, helping them win three Ranji Trophy titles. Besides, his contribution with the bat was also impressive, scoring 2297 runs with two centuries against his name.

He was a terrific spinner -- a rare bowler, who could bowl both the Chinaman and slow left arm. Despite his talent, Vijayakrishna, who started his domestic career in the 1968-69 season, never got an opportunity to represent India at the international level due to the sheer competition that existed during the time. Bishan Singh Bedi, BS Chandrasekhar, Erapalli Prasanna and Dilip Doshi among others also belonged to the same era.

#Karnataka first class #Cricketer B Vijayakrishna(71) passes away in #Bengaluru.
In his career spanning 15 yrs the left arm spinner n a left handed batsman, played 80 matches scored 2,297 runs, took 194 wkts.@AshwiniMS_TNIE @XpressBengaluru @Xpress_Sports @ashim_sport pic.twitter.com/6tYKJxhZIg

— Devaraj Hirehalli Bhyraiah (@swaraj76) June 17, 2021

"He had a lot of variations in his bowling armoury, and troubled batsmen regularly. You know he had so much control too. If Bishan and all those players were not there during the time, he would have definitely played for India. I am 100 percent sure, he was that good. That era was different, India had some world-class spinners. If you just look at left arm spinners then, you had Bishan, Dilip Doshi. It is due to such kind of competition then, that he did not get a break," said former Karnataka player Sudhakar Rao, who added that the passing away of Vijayakrishna is a huge loss as they were good friends too. In fact, even Karnataka Chief Minister BS Yediyurappa condoled his demise, stating ' ....In his death, we have lost a great cricketer. May his soul rest in peace.'.  

Former players remember him as a passionate cricketer, who always gave it his all. More importantly, as a senior member of the state team later, he guided youngsters in the team, including former spinner Raghuram Bhat. The latter went on to represent India in two Test matches, but Bhat was at a loss for words when he learned about the death of Vijayakrishna.

“It (his passing away) is a big loss to me. I have no words to say. It is a sad day. I have a lot of memories with him. I owe a lot to him as he would always guide me when we were playing for the state team. He used to offer me tips as to how I should bowl in a match. We used to bowl in tandem as well. Even just watching him and some other senior players at the nets, I learned a lot. He has played an important role in my career. Whatever he did for me, can never be forgotten or never be replaced,” said Bhat.  

Off the field, he was a wonderful human being as well. Rao opened up on the kind of person Vijayakrishna was, referring to him as a disciplined person. "He was a very straightforward person and a great human being. If you did something wrong, he would tell you on your face, whoever it may be and say 'I don't agree with you.' He was very disciplined and a passionate cricketer too," said Rao.