Batting great Sachin Tendulkar on Friday offered condolences to India fast bowler Bhuvneshwar Kumar, whose father died on Thursday after a long battle with cancer. Bhuvneshwar's father Kiran Pal Singh, 63, died at his Meerut residence Thursday night after battling liver cancer for eight months. Taking to Twitter Tendulkar wrote: "I am deeply saddened by the news of your father's demise, @BhuviOfficial. May his soul rest in peace. My condolences to you and your family".
Bhuvneswar's father was a retired sub-inspector in UP Police and is survived by his wife Indresh Devi and two children, Bhuvneshwar and Rekha. He was first detected with the illness in September last year when the fast bowler was in the United Arab Emirates for the 13th edition of the IPL, said news agency PTI, quoting ESPNCricinfo.
He was admitted to a private hospital in Meerut two weeks back after his condition deteriorated.
The same report further added that he was discharged from hospital on Tuesday but succumbed to the illness two days later at his residence in UP.
Kiran Pal Singh was undergoing treatment, including chemotherapy, at the All India Institute of Medical Science (AIIMS) in New Delhi after consulting doctors in the UK.
Bhuvneshwar, known for his seam and swing bowling, wasn't picked in India's Test squad for the England tour and his exclusion raised left many shell-shocked.
Recently, the fast bowler took to Twitter to rubbish reports which claimed that he wasn't named in the 20-man squad because he didn't want to play Test cricket any more.
Refuting all such reports, the SRH pacer wrote that he has always prepared himself to play all three formats for the country and would continue to do so in future as well. He suggested everyone not to write articles "based on sources".
"There have been articles about me not wanting to play Test cricket. Just to clarify, I have always prepared myself for all three formats irrespective of the team selection and will continue to do the same. Suggestion - please don't write your assumptions based on "sources"!" Bhuvneshwar had tweeted.
(With PTI inputs)