Akhtar Ali, former Davis Cupper and legendary coach, passed away in the early hours of Sunday, family sources said. He was 81 and is survived by his wife, son Zeeshan Ali and two daughters.

He had been suffering from various ailments, including Parkinson's disease, and was admitted to a hospital in South Calcutta in the last week of January with severe urinary tract infection and kidney and lungs related issues. He was brought home on Saturday and his family members were at his bedside when he passed away at around 2.30am.

His last rites were performed on Sunday evening.

With Ali's demise Indian tennis fraternity lost a coach who had guided generations of players, including Vijay Amritraj, Leander Paes, Mahesh Bhupathi, Sania Mirza and Somdev Dev Varman. Even among his peers, his knowledge of the game and winning strategies were acknowledged.

The legendary Ramanathan Krishnan, his Davis Cup teammate said: "I knew him for 65 years. The whole tennis family, India and abroad, knew Akhtar Ali. He was a very popular man. Without hesitation I can say, he was the life of every tournament he played. As a coach, he helped improve every player who came in contact with him. Indeed a very sad day."

For Jaidip Mukerjea, it was loss of a dear friend. "In our playing days, Naresh (Kumar), Akhtar and I used to practise every day at the South Club. We would have lunch together, cycle around the city together. There have been differences between us, but beyond everything we were great friends. And I must say he was one of India's best coaches. Even as a player, his advice was priceless. During the 1966 Davis Cup match against Brazil, which we finally won, it was his idea that Ramanathan and I should play the doubles. He was a good player of course, but he was definitely a much better coach. He deserved to get the Dronacharya Award, but never did."

Amritraj tweeted: "Aktar Ali was terrific as a coach both when I was a junior as well as coach of our India Davis Cup team. Always pushed hard n kept the team relaxed. He did great service to Indian Tennis. RIP dear Aktar. Sincere condolences to Zeeshan n his lovely family."

Sania Mirza told The Telegraph: "Akhtar Sir was one of the best tennis coaches of our country. He was also a wonderful human being, a dear friend of my father and my ardent well-wisher. May the Almighty grant him eternal peace."

Her father Imran said: "Akhtar bhai was a man with a heart of gold,whose passion for tennis was legendary. I have lost a dear friend and adviser and will sorely miss him."

Mahesh Bhupathi, paying his tribute, said: "It's a big loss for Indian tennis. He was the best coach India had. His passion and support for the game every time we played, win or lose, was always something that motivated not only me but all the boys."

Former national champion and coach Enrico Piperno said: "Indian tennis is much poorer with the loss of Akhtar Sir. He was a father figure to us all."

Naresh Kumar and Leander Paes, both very close Ali, were too shocked to react.

Born on July 5, 1939, Ali was a regular in the Indian Davis Cup team from 1958 to 1964 with stalwarts like Ramanathan, Mukerjea, and Premjit Lall, playing against teams like Pakistan, Malaysia, Iran, Mexico, Japan and Monaco. He was also adept at squash and had won the nationals in 1968.

He was conferred the Arjuna Award in 2000 for lifetime contribution to tennis.