Played 7 ODIs for India, built CSK's foundation, but debt drove him to death

Long before the likes of Abhishek Sharma and Vaibhav Sooryavanshi, the trend of taking on bowlers from the very first delivery were far less common. However, a few players embraced that approach, and among Indians, 1983 World Cup winner Kris Srikkanth was widely regarded as one of the pioneers.

Srikkanth's blazing approach made batting partners at opposite end appear pedestrian. But Vakkadai Biksheswaran Chandrasekhar was an exception. He once smashed a 56-ball ton in the Irani Trophy, which was the fastest by an Indian in first-class cricket until Rishabh Pant broke it in 2016.

As mentioned in ESPNcricinfo, the knock paved the way for his ODI debut, but Chandrasekhar failed to make the same impact in international cricket. He made just seven appearances for India, accumulating 88 runs in total with the highest score of 53.

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Chandrasekhar, however, remained a constant figure for Tamil Nadu in the domestic circuit and was one of the stars in their 1987-88 Ranji Trophy triumph. He amassed 572 runs in the 1991-92 season and led the state before switching to Goa. His highest score in domestic cricket is an unbeaten 237, which he scored while representing Goa against Kerala, and he announced his retirement in the late 90s.

Shaping CSK's strong foundation

Chandrasekhar, also acknowledged by Chennai Super Kings (CSK), is regarded as "one of the main architects" behind their "strong foundation". He represented the franchise at the first IPL auction in 2008 and was the man holding the baton when they acquired ex-India and former franchise captain MS Dhoni for $1.5 million, and the rest is history.

Speaking at Sportstar Conclave, N Srinivasan, the owner of CSK, revealed the conversation between him and Chandrasekhar before they signed Dhoni. "At the IPL auctions, I missed the first two picks. I had asked V.B. Chandrasekhar to hold the baton. At any price, I wanted M.S. Dhoni."

Debt drove him to death

However, the story of Chandrasekhar ended on a tragic note as the former Indian cricketer committed suicide over debts in 2019. As mentioned in multiple media reports, he ended his life by hanging himself at his house in Chennai.

“He was under a lot of stress due to the debts incurred,” a police official was quoted as saying in news reports.

The former cricketer, at the time of his passing, was only six days short of his 58th birthday. He owned the VB Kanchi Veerans team in the Tamil Nadu Premier League. While team ownership kept him involved in the sport, it is reported to have brought significant financial strain.

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