Bowled by the mutton dosa and payasam

Despite restrictions, visiting cricketers get a taste of the city.
The last five days was a treat for cricket fans in the city as they watched some of their fave cricket players Yuvraj Singh, Sreesanth and Suresh Raina in action at the Vijay Hazare Trophy matches held in the city that ended on Sunday.
Apart from appearances at the stadium, the cricketers stayed put in their hotels all through their stay.They even went about their fitness routines in the hotel premises jogging along the private beach, much to the disappointment of the locals.
Although the players did not venture out, they did try out local delicacies. On the first day, Yuvraj Singh (captain of the Punjab team), Suresh Raina (Gujarat team) and Venkatesh Prasad (head coach of the Uttar Pradesh team) headed out to the restaurant for dinner.
According to sources, Yuvraj was served garma garam phulkas with Tandoori chicken. “It was not at all a difficult task to serve Yuvraj as he loves trying out anything made of chicken. He especially loved the South Indian style chicken,” says our source.
At the hotel, Suresh Raina was spotted trying out some of the local delicacies like Mutton Dosa, Jumbo Prawns Fry (South Indian style) and was seen asking for more. “He couldn’t stop raving about it,” says our source. On the other hand, Venkatesh Prasad preferred to opt for ‘simple vegetarian food’ — mostly vegetable fried rice and curd rice, adds the source.
Meanwhile, Sreesanth who was playing for the Kerala team, who was put up a different hotel, was his usual flamboyant self and was seen indulging in seafood and dosas. To celebrate their team’s victory on the first day, a special cake was made in the shape of a cricket bat and Sreesanth, who has a sweet tooth, was seen enjoying himself.
Even these indulgences were a rarity as during their five-day stay in the city, the players were on a specific diet. “We were given strict orders that the cricketers are not supposed to eat according to their individual choice. So, we were very careful when it came to their diet as fitness was paramount. At the end of the meal, we would serve them payasam and halwa for dessert and they all loved it,” says a chef at the hotel.