former captain of india Sunil Gavaskar After the demise of this great West Indies player on Friday, tributes were paid to Sir Garfield Sobers, calling him the greatest cricketer the game has ever seen and a player whom every child dreams of becoming.Sobers, considered cricket’s greatest all-rounder, died at his home in Barbados, 11 days before his 90th birthday. During a career spanning two decades, he set new standards with his batting, bowling and fielding.“This is perhaps the saddest day for the game of cricket. The world’s greatest cricketer has left us. No words can do justice to the cricketer Sir Garfield Sobers.”“He was everything we dream of becoming when we pick up a bat or a ball as children,” Gavaskar was quoted as saying by news agency PTI.He said, “The memories keep coming back and I will always hold them close to my heart. Rest in peace, Sir Garfield. You will always be in our hearts.”Sobers represented the West Indies in 93 Test matches between 1954 and 1974. He scored 8,032 runs at an average of 57.78, including 26 centuries, and also took 235 wickets.A left-handed batsman, Sobers was equally effective as a left-arm fast-medium bowler, a left-arm orthodox spinner and a left-arm wrist spinner. He was also known as one of the finest fielders and closer catchers in the history of the game.His unbeaten 365 against Pakistan in 1958 was the highest individual score in Test cricket at that time. This record remained intact for 36 years.Another milestone came in 1968, when, playing county cricket for Nottinghamshire, he became the first player to hit six sixes in an over in first-class cricket. This feat came against Malcolm Nash of Glamorgan.Sobers was knighted by Queen Elizabeth II in 1975 for his services to cricket. In 2000, he was named one of Wisden’s five cricketers of the 20th century.His name also lives on through the Sir Garfield Sobers Trophy, an annual ICC award given to the outstanding men’s international cricketer across all formats.