Raja Bhalendra Singh was born into Patiala's royal Sikh household on August 9, 1919 and died on April 16, 1992. He was the son of Bhupendra Singh, the legendary Maharaj of Patiala (who reportedly had 300 wives and concubines) and brother of the Yuvraj, Yadavendra Singh, who played in a Test match at Madras against England in 1933-34. Singh was given a trial in the Seniors' Match at Cambridge University in 1939, when his slow right-arm bowling produced a return of five for 40. On the strength of this he was included in the team against Northamptonshire. This was his only first-class match in England but in India he later played 12 matches for Southern Punjab and Patiala. A middle-order right-handed batsman, he made 392 runs for an average of 21.77, including 109 for Southern Punjab against Northern India at Patiala in 1943-44. He took 25 wickets at 27.00 apiece. He later became President of the Indian Olympic Association and was a member of the International Olympic Committee for 45 years.
Wisden Cricketers' Almanack