Hyderabad: Former coach and left-arm spinner D Ashok passed away here on Monday a prolonged illness. He was 64. He is survived by his wife, three sons and a daughter.
Ashok was one of the personal coaches of former Test star VVS Laxman. He worked with Laxman for long hours at the nets. In fact, during his farewell speech while retiring from international cricket, Laxman mentioned the name of Ashok and his contribution as coach.
During his playing days, Ashok was the captain of top clubs like Hyderabad Blues, Deccan Blues and Ensconse. He played in the junior state team and was also part of the Ranji Trophy squad but failed to make his debut. Playing under late ML Jaisimha’s captaincy for U Foam team, Ashok had a five-wicket haul against State Bank of India in the Moin-ud-Dowla cricket tournament.
After retiring from the game, Ashok became a full-fledged coach. He started his coaching stint in St John’s Academy and was coach of many local teams where he could train players like Laxman and MSK Prasad.
A dedicated coach, Ashok also was involved in coaching several Ranji Trophy and junior players like B Anirudh, Chandan Sahani, Buddhi Rahul, G Aniketh Reddy among others. He then went on to establish his own academy in Bowenpally where many junior players used to train under him.
Big loss to me. Ashok bhai was not only my coach but was like a older brother. He was a passionate and dedicated coach who always motivated me to get better. Will miss you badly Ashok bhai. RIP🙏 https://t.co/KhZB9xt4zl