India's 1983 World Cup hero Yashpal Sharma dies of cardiac arrest

India's 1983 World Cup hero Yashpal Sharma died on Tuesday after suffering a massive cardiac arrest here.

He was 66 and is survived by his wife, two daughters and a son.

"Yes, Yashpal is no more with us. We just received the information from his family," a former India teammate of Yashpal confirmed to PTI.

In his international career, Yashpal played 37 Tests, scoring 1606 runs, and 42 ODIs in which he scored 883.

He was known for his gutsy attitude and his stroke-filled half century in the semifinal against England in the 1983 campaign at the Old Trafford will forever be etched in the public memory.

He was also a national selector during early part of 2000.

Yaspal Sharma cricket career

The right-handed batsman, who was the backbone of India's middle-order in the 1983 World Cup, played 37 Test matches, scoring 1606 runs, and 42 ODIs scoring 883 runs. He also played 160 first-class matches, representing Punjab, Haryana and Railways, and scored 8933 runs.

But he was best remembered internationally for his performances in India's first World Cup win, in 1983. He aggregated 240 runs at an average of 34.28 to return as the second-highest scorer for India behind skipper Kapil Dev in the tournament.

Sharma had top-scored with 89 (off 120 balls) to help India make 262/8 in their 34-run victory over West Indies in their first match of the 1983 World Cup. That win in Manchester gave India the self-belief to go on and win the tournament.