H Sundaram dies after accident

Former Tamil Nadu wicketkeeper H Sundaram has died at the age of 60 following a fall from a ladder at his home in Chennai on Saturday.

Sundaram played seven first-class games between 1974 and 1977, scoring 31 and making 13 dismissals, for a Tamil Nadu side that included former Test offspinner and umpire S Venkatarghavan. Although he was considered one of the finest in Tamil Nadu at the time, Sundaram had a forgettable debut, recording a duck against Kerala. He also played against a Sri Lanka side - yet to receive Test status - that included Roy Dias, Duleep Mendis and Sidhath Wettimuny.

V Ramnarayan, a former team-mate of Sundaram, remembered his unusual left-handed style of keeping. "His left-handedness showed in his keeping, as he often gathered with one hand, the left hand", Ramnarayan wrote in his blog Stumped. "It often produced spectacular results, especially in the form of leg-side stumpings. He loved to stand up to the medium pacers and remove the bails in a flash. In the 1970s, he was regarded as the best stumper in Tamil Nadu, and even played for the state briefly, until one fine morning, miffed at being overlooked in favour of the young Bharat Reddy, he wrote to the cricket association asking them not to consider him any more for selection."

He is survived by his wife and two sons.