Tall and slim, Dilip Vengsarkar was an elegant strokeplayer but on his day - which was often - he could be a tormentor of even the strongest attacks. He was India's No. 3 for many years and from that pivotal position guided the fortunes of the country's batting for more than a decade.

He burst upon the scene as a talented teenager when he scored a breezy 110 for Bombay against Rest of India in the Irani Trophy match at Nagpur in 1975, in the process taking a heavy toll of Bishan Bedi and Erapalli Prasanna, then at their peak. On his immense potential, he was straightaway inducted into the Indian team but success was rather slow in coming. It was not until the tour of Australia in 1977-78 that Vengsarkar established himself in the side, after which, for the next 15 years he was one of India's batting bulwarks.

From the late-'70s to the late-'80s, he was among the best batters in the country and, during a purple patch in the second of those decades, he was very nearly the leading player in the world. From 1986 to 1988, in 16 Tests he scored eight hundreds. Vengsarkar's best known feat, of course, is being the first to score three hundreds against England at Lord's. A superb player of the drive, he could also pull effortlessly and hook fearlessly. He put on an unbroken partnership of 344 for the second wicket with Sunil Gavaskar against West Indies in Calcutta in 1978-79 - then an Indian record.

Vengsarkar led the country in ten Tests, but lost the captaincy in 1989 following a controversial tour to the USA to play some festival matches. He lost his place in the side temporarily and though he was brought back for a few games in the early '90s, he was never really the same commanding player. At the time of his retirement in 1992, he was second only to Gavaskar in runs and centuries scored in Tests for India.

Vengsarkar served as the BCCI's chairman of selectors between 2006 and 2008.