Milind Rege, former Mumbai captain and selector, passed away on Wednesday after suffering a heart attack, just days after turning 76.
Rege played 52 first-class matches between 1966-67 and 1977-78, taking 126 wickets with his offbreaks and scoring 1532 runs at an average of 23.56. After retiring, he remained closely associated with Mumbai cricket, serving as a selector and later as chief selector in different stints.
Rege played a key role in Mumbai’s cricketing history, notably being one of the selectors who included a young Sachin Tendulkar in the Ranji Trophy squad in 1988. In 2006, he advocated for Mumbai’s early use of video analysis in domestic cricket, a pioneering move at the time. Reflecting on Mumbai’s cricketing ethos in 2017, he emphasized the rigorous standards players had to meet, recalling the influence of greats like Vijay Merchant, Madhav Mantri, Polly Umrigar, and Manohar Hardikar on his career.
In his memory, both Mumbai and Vidarbha teams observed a minute’s silence before the third day’s play of the ongoing Ranji Trophy semi-final in Nagpur. Mumbai players, many of whom debuted under his selection tenure, wore black armbands.
Mumbai Cricket Association (MCA) president Ajinkya Naik paid tribute, calling Rege a stalwart whose contributions as a player, selector, and mentor were invaluable. His guidance, Naik said, shaped generations of cricketers, and his legacy will always be cherished.
A childhood friend of Sunil Gavaskar, Rege shared school, college, and club cricket experiences with him at Dadar Union Sporting Club. Despite suffering a heart attack at 26 during his playing days, he returned to cricket the following season. Since 2020, he served as an advisor at MCA.
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