Sports Minister Ajay Maken [ Images ] on Thursday, condoled the death of former India [ Images ] cricket captain Mansur Ali Khan Pataudi, who passed away on Thursday evening, after battling a lung infection for the last few months.

"The entire nation has lost a legend. May his soul rest in peace. My thoughts are with the family," Maken said in a message from Beijing [ Images ], where he is leading an Indian youth delegation on a 10-day trip as part of an exchange programme.

The 70-year-old cricketer, one of India's earl fraternity, was suffering from interstitial lung disease, a condition in which the passage of oxygen to the two lungs is less than normal.

He is survived by his wife Sharmila Tagore [ Images ], his actor son Saif Ali Khan [ Images ] and his two daughters Soha and Saba Ali Khan. His entire family was at his bedside when the end came at 5.55 pm on Thursday evening.