Dreams.......started,realised, relished yet unfulfilled ......

It all started when i was in 8th Std..... the passion and fire to play big stage cricket was always inspiring me to get on to the field.... but being a athlete,volley ball and a lawn tennis player representing the state and zonal tournaments ( more out of compulsion and passion to play sports and remain fit) it was really hard for me to play cricket as i have never played the game before...... A mere spectator was my position watching at my classmates and neighbors play the game in front of me...

Then one fine day... i thought hard & to realize my dream i spoke to one of my friends who was a terrific cricketer (tennis ball)... He said the game & its rules cant be learn't overnight , he advised me to watch the game closely and especially the series between West Indies tour of Australia and the Famous Ashes on screen. I was fascinated by mere presence and dominance the Windies had on the game.. before this series the only other time i have watched an entire series (almost 70% ) was the 1992 world cup..... the first cricketer who captured me and made me follow him like a frantic till he recently retired was Sir Brian Charles Lara & Stephen Roger Waugh.....

My strict father was always against the game of cricket and that's why he did make me join tennis as he believed it was a sport where an individual brilliance would be recognized and the rewards were always ripe when compared to cricket( all match fixing scandals added to it ) For 2 continuous years i watched the ashes and the Caribbean calypso series and started doing shadow practices at night (without the knowledge of my parents) to make my footwork and bat swing in sync. Since the initial fear of the hard cricket ball made my game to be a rubber ball game. The shadow practice did work well except for the bouncy deliveries that the rubber ball did. My first game was a friendly match with my 9th school mates after the annual exams.... i was generously allowed to bat at the no:8 spot and did get to bowl 1 and half (baby) overs ... i manged to score 10 runs and get a wicket(clean bowled)..That night i felt i was on the moon.... the next 2 matches i was made to sit out and carry drinks...but then in the mean time i had a lot of confidence gaining with the first outing... then came the moment when i quit tennis due to heavy schedule of my school.

" Yath Bhaavamm Tatt Bhavathi "

" Yatho Vaasthas Thatto Drushti, Yatho Drushti Thatto Manaha, Yatho Manas Thatto Bhavaha, Yatho Bhavoo Thatto Rasaha,Yatho Rasas Thatto vidhya sithi hi "
" Yaadhruseeya ya Vidhmahe, Thaatruseeya ya Dhee mahi "

There arose the opportunity to play with few of my school seniors & pals who were part of the school team in a soft tennis ball best of triangular 5 match series held at Teacher's college & IDPL grounds. It was a big tournament for me considering my entry and competing with those who have played and practiced more than me...... Since i had the natural pace & bat speed with the help of my lawn tennis strokes, i secured a place in the playing 11 without much fuss .. i was offered to be a part of the opening bowling pair... my pace really made my seniors to take notice of my bowling and thereby they recommended me to my PT master .I knew i can deliver the same with the cricket ball too..So i decided to give it a try.Every morning i had the habit of going for the jog in the YMCA grounds @ nandanam.. There i found few of my gymnastics master's friends playing with the cricket ball @ nets.. I was admitted to bowl to them and straight away i got into groove.I had the natural in swinger working well for me with some genuine pace .. my PT master always use to get into a practice session,monitor everyone and then pick the squad for the tourneys...i was made to bowl to him and immediately i caught him surprised by my pace...I was in to the 15 member school squad straightaway.. Though my batting was not bad... because of the inexperience i was always forced to bat at no:7 & 8 positions...Inter school tournaments made me get rich with a lot of experience...The independence cup organized by the St.Bede's school made me a force to reckon..

I was on a high when i switched school during my 11th std to ahobilla mutt..The school that had some real natural cricketers who even without practices would be a force to reckon with those who practiced well.I went for the selection procedure and found the team very interesting and there arose the feeling to be part of the team.I had few of my class mates and one of my best buddy till date as the vice captain of the team.. So it was a cake walk in the selection and soon we started our school tournaments. We had our PT master Mr.Murali Krishna (one of the selectors for the under 16 & 18 ) for the TNCA in charge .It gave us the recognition wherever we went yet practice was denied whenever we need ..The School was strict in entrusting that sports were part of the school and that alone cannot be a career path then... So went into some tough tournaments and lost many in the quarter and semis stage,though it was the bigest performance that our school team had made since it started way back in 1992.So we team mates got immediate attention and recognition throughout our school.We were a al round side with equal participation of old and new schoolmates,but the fact that all the 15 were all rounders and had the same passion towards the game.This acted as catalyst to make the team jell well. We did have two state players in our rank who have already represented the under 12 & 14 stages for TNCA.To be frank the first time a non regular participating team till then looked strong enough to challenge the likes of Good cricket oriented schools in the city like the St. John's (Mandavelli,Anna Nagar, etc)St.Bede's,DAV's ,DonBosco and the nation public. These were real strong teams and we gave them all a run for their pride & money in almost all the tournaments that we played in those 2 years.I personally enjoyed a lot of success with my top order batting and bowling during these golden days.....

Mr. Santhanam of YMCA cricket coach,( bro of Mr. murali (PT Master)) was the one who kindles our team effort & performance by making us play with the YMCA school on regular basis stating we were the underdogs.Almost 7 /10 we defeated them comprehensively.The Young Stars Cricket tournament that saw 64 teams participating in it held at various big grounds like SRMC,SRF,CLRI,GNC,Vivekanada,AM Jain,English Electrical s was the one which all our team members would cherish. We emerged winners by stunning the St.John's & St.Bede's before we reached finals. We had a well fought finals with Nightingale school( a resurgent one with many state players admitted in the lateral level) . We won the trophy and brought the honor to our school.The First time our school has won any major tournaments in the cricketing arena.So a new identity was created for our school by our batch . We succeeded in not only maintaining the cent um & state record holder in academics but also bringing in a new cricketing identity to cash in more seats in the coming years.

My individual performances were more rejoicing and confidence boosting as i made more & more paper scores with all round display.batting at No:4 position & sharing the new ball was a permanat slots for me throught my school matches and eventually wherever & whichever team i started to represent from then on, ..Including my efforts,few of my colleagues registered their maiden century & many 5 wicket hauls in those 2 years.The day came when we all finished and split from school to join various colleges as per the convenience and availability thus faded away the reputation of our school which we built for 2 years.I was fortunate to get into a cricketing cultured college where even the Legends like The Wall Mr. Rahul Dravid would come to practice regularly, but because of the clash of character and attitudes with my college PT master i stayed away from representing the college team( A error which i still feel for, but eventually i dint have any other go at that point to refrain away from that place)But i made sure i make my presence felt in the cricketing and volley ball arena of my college by participating in the Inter department matches taking on those who were part of the college team.My background was strong enough to take on them as I was playing regularly for a league team in the 4th division of TNCA and many more local tournaments for few clubs.I had a lot of fantastic matches which i still relish. they stay so pleasant and fond in my memories. my all round display during my first and second year of the inter department matches made me get another offer to be part of the nets of the college team, but then final year arrived and academic career gained prominence that sports and so i curbed myself from then. After degree it was time for me to move to my higher studies (MBA) and there ended my cricketing career as 2 years of MBA and first 2 years of my work made almost a halt .But then this is reality as priorities change as we grew up and responsibilities came automatically along with them. " Udyaogam purusha Latchanam "

I have missed many good things because of cricket like, family functions, friends get together's, few trips, a lot of girls and their friendship, my chance in falling in love, kadalai's with them, many social gatherings..But still whatever i gained from cricket was equally tremendous in terms of adoration from friends who played with me, their family & friends, my opponents, etc... Now i meet many of them who played with me wanting to be in the big stage just playing the local leather ball tournaments, tennis ball tournaments,inter company matches etc... many have stopped playing the game too.. ha ha ha ..... thats how life is...

Playing cricket again became a dream and watching them on TV and getting animated like any other fans of the game became a routine.I wanted to play again but then had opportunities only with soft ball (tennis ball) games... until recently say 7 months back .. I have started hitting the leather pretty regularly and i am trying to get back to my best which is far far way to go . i am not getting my raw pace,my bat swing has got delayed & my stamina to play and bowl for long hrs is not at all visible ... ... so my dream of making big in cricket (often i get them ) will still be a dream which i will treasure & enjoy but the journey to this moment is a relishing one yet unfulfilled ....