Full name Sukhdevsinhji Relations (see below) Name Sukhdevsinhji Sukhdevsinhji | 1953 Baroda | |
Rajkumar Shri Sukhdevsinhji Rajendrasinhji Jadeja (born 6 June 1936), known professionally as R. K. Sukhdevsinhji, is an Indian businessman and former cricketer. Sukhdevsinhji played a single first-class match for Baroda during the 1953–54 season, aged 17. His father, General maharajah Rajendrasinhji, was descended from the ruling family of Nawanagar State, and many other members of his family played cricket at high levels. Sukhdevsinhji later studied economics at St. Stephen's College, Delhi, and has held a variety of positions with companies in India's oil and gas sector, most notably as chairman of Bharat Petroleum.
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Early life and family
Sukhdevsinhji's father, General Rajendrasinhji, was a high-ranking officer in the post-independence Indian Army, and was both the last Commander-in-Chief and the first Chief of the Army Staff. Descended from the Jam Sahibs of Nawanagar, his father's family were prominent in Sarodar (or Sadodar), a village in Nawanagar State on Gujarat's Kathiawar peninsula. The family gained prominence when Rajendrasinhji's uncle, Ranjitsinhji, succeeded a distant relation as Jam Sahib. Ranitsinhji had played Test cricket for England, and a number of other members of the family played first-class cricket, including a first cousin of Sukhdevsinhji, Vikramsinhji. As with his father and most other male members of his family, Sukhdevsinhji was schooled at the Rajkumar College in Rajkot.
Sporting career
A representative Commonwealth XI cricket team, captained by Australian Ben Barnett, toured India during the 1953–54 season. The tour began in western India, with the team's third match coming against Baroda, a Ranji Trophy side sponsored by and featuring Fatehsinghrao Gaekwad, the ruling Maharajah Gaekwad of Baroda State. Aged 17, Sukhdevsinhji was selected to appear for Baroda in the match, in what was to be his only game at first-class level. Batting ninth in Baroda's first innings, he made three runs before being dismissed by Jim McConnon, who played two Tests for England the following season. Vijay Hazare, Baroda's captain and a Test player for India, scored 175 not out in the same innings, and he and Sukhdevsinhji featured in an 18-run partnership for the eighth wicket. However, the match finished in a draw after three days. Sukhdevsinhji remained involved in cricket long after the conclusion of his playing career, and at one stage was on the executive committee of the Cricket Club of India.
Business career
Sukhdevsinhji attended St. Stephen's College at the University of Delhi, studying economics. He was initially employed with India's Ministry of Petroleum and Natural Gas, and served as a director of the ministry's Oil Coordination Committee (OCC). Sukhdevsinhji has held board-level positions in a number of government corporations and publicly traded companies, including:
Sukhdevsinhji is married to Rani Vijaylakshmi Kumari, a daughter of Rao Narayan Singh Saheb, the Thakur of Masuda in Ajmer-Merwara.