"I was absolutely devastated" - Rohit Sharma pays tribute to Anshuman Gaekwad

India captain Rohit Sharma has said he was 'absolutely devasted' to learn about the death of former cricketer Anshuman Gaekwad. The former India cricketer and head coach passed away on Wednesday night (July 31) aged 71, after a long battle with blood cancer.

He was in London till last month for treatment before returning to India. Recently, former India captain Kapil Dev had revealed that Anshuman Gaekwad and his family were struggling financially to deal with the treatment cost in London. Kapil Dev had also urged the BCCI to help his former teammate financially.

The BCCI responded immediately and announced to release of INR 1 crore for the former batsman's treatment. Subsequently, he was shifted to India and was undergoing treatment at the Bhailal Amin General Hospital in Vadodara.

Rohit Sharma pays tribute:

With the Indian cricket fraternity mourning the death of Anshuman Gaekwad, Rohit Sharma also paid condolences. Speaking to the media ahead of the first ODI against Sri Lanka, the India captain began by saying that he was absolutely devastated before stating that he was lucky to have a few conversations with Gaekwad.

"I was absolutely devastated to hear that news. I was lucky to have a few conversations with him during the BCCI awards, and on a personal note as well. When I was playing Ranji Trophy, he was there and I had a chance to speak to him when he had a few things to talk about my game as well, which was overwhelming for me because he was such a great cricketer for us," said Rohit Sharma.

"It's always nice when you learn from your seniors, understand how cricket was played back in the day, how tough it was and then to pass on his experiences on cricket and what his visions are about cricket. For me to understand that was a great learning at that point.”

"Condolences to his family, it's not a good time when you lose your loved ones, it's always tough. I was lucky that I had a few chances to meet him and talk to him on a personal level," he added.

Gaekwad played for India from 1975 to 1987. He represented the national team in 40 Tests and 15 ODIs. In Tests, Gaekwad scored 1985 runs with the help of two centuries and 10 half-centuries. In ODIs, he scored 269 runs. After retiring as a player, he also served as a head coach for India.