Chennai: He has been the oldest living Indian Test cricketer since Dattajirao Gaekwad of Baroda passed away in February last year. Chingleput Doraikannu Gopinath who turns 95 on March 1 played eight Tests from 1951 to 1960 with moderate success in a fragmented career but he was the champion batsman for Madras in the fifties. With a record of 2349 runs at an average of just over 51 with six hundred and a highest score of 234 in the Ranji Trophy he would be an automatic selection for an all-time Tamil Nadu XI as a middle-order batsman.

Born in Madras Gopinath made his first-class debut in 1949-50 (he got a pair in his first Ranji Trophy game against Mysore) and in a comparatively short career that ended with the 1962-63 season because of business interests he scored 4259 runs at an average of 42 with nine hundred. But more than the impressive figures it was his elegant batsmanship that caught the eye.

A cultivated stylist Gopinath was an elegant right-hander who charmed the ball away from the fielders. He played pace and spin with equal felicity and old timers recalled with a glint in their eyes his majestic 175 made for South zone against the New........

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