Veteran journalist Kishore Bhimani, a regular at UAE cricket events, passes away

Dubai: Veteran cricket writer and commentator Kishore Bhimani, who was a regular at the Sharjah Cricket Stadium from the early 1980s, passed away at the age of 80 in Kolkata, India.

Bhimani’s columns for The Statesman, a widely respected newspaper where he spent his entire career, was the most sought-after among cricket lovers. Along with journalists such as the late Rajan Bala, CS Rao of the Hindustan Times and Sundar Rajan of the Times of India, Bhimani had played a significant role in ensuring that all the excitement from Sharjah’s Cricketers Benefit Fund Series (CBFS) matches reached India cricket fans.

He was one of the commentators during India’s tied Test against Australia at Chennai in 1986, and his famous barritone was the trademark.

Bhimani was a friend of many cricket fans in the UAE, while he did all interviews with the legendary cricketers in Shyam Bhatia’s book ‘Portraits of the Game.’ He was respected by cricketers as well as officials for his deep knowledge of the game and he was honoured with the Lifetime Achievement award for contribution to the game in 2012 during the Fifth H&G Clinic Journalism Awards from former India captain and coach Ravi Shastri.

He was also regularly invited to give talks on cricket. One of his books: ‘Accidental Godman,’ published in 2012 was among the best-sellers.

While discussing cricket at the Eden Gardens press box, where he never missed a Test match, Bhimani said: “I don’t understand why a fast bowler should stare at a batsman. His delivery should do the talking.”

He also offered an important advice to fellow reporters: “Whenever you write, remember you are not writing for yourself but for the reader and always respect his intelligence.”

His son, Gautam Bhimani, is a popular sports commentator and TV anchor now.