Mumbai's cricketing class on a rainy day

MUMBAI: In forgettable times for Indian cricket, this was one memorable afternoon. An array of former cricketers, mainly from Mumbai and a few from elsewhere too, landed up at the Khar Gymkhana on Sunday to catch up with each other after ages, upon an initiative taken by veteran journalist Makarand Waingankar. Braving heavy rain, many had come from far-flung areas -- former India all-rounder Salim Durrani in fact, came down all the way from Jamnagar for the get-together.
It was worth it, for how often do you meet the likes of Bapu Nadkarni, Vasu Paranjpe, Dilip Vengsarkar, Balwinder Singh Sandhu, Ajit Pai, Umesh & Nilesh Kulkarni, Sharad Hazare, Vignesh Shahane, Raju Kulkarni, Chandrakant Pandit, Kenya Jayanthilal, Paddy Shivalkar and Abey Kurvilla under one roof. The Mumbai Cricket Association (MCA) too made its presence felt, with president Ravi Sawant and all the other office-bearers being a part of the occasion.
"It was wonderful to meet those I have played with or against after ages. I have always enjoyed coming to Khar Gymkhana," Vengsarkar told TOI. "Ex-cricketers always get a lot of respect in this club," remarked Sandhu, before coming out with an interesting observation. "We never discussed the spot-fixing scandal. All of us are too much in love with the game to talk about its negative aspects," he revealed. Vengsarkar did, however, make the point that the general mood was that it is time "sport is administered by former sportspersons, rather than politicians."
For these cricketers, who belong to an era when there was little money in the game, it was difficult to understand how a few players these days indulge in corrupt activities to earn a quick buck.
"I don't even know the spelling of spot-fixing! It's all so painful to see. Only God knows what's the truth," said Durrani. "In our time, we would be paid Rs 50 per day for a Test match. But we enjoyed playing the game," he recalled. Nadkarni recalled that in his time, the players would get Rs 5 as match fee during Ranji Trophy. "If we won the Ranji, we would be awarded a 'shirt length' so that we could get a new shirt stitched," Hazare recalled. It seems insane to compare this to the rich booty -- Rs 4 cr -- that the Mumbai team pocketed a few days back for winning its 40th Ranji title.
Refreshingly, the ex-cricketers don't pin the blame for recent controversies on the much-maligned IPL. "The event offers good money to the players. It is a platform for young cricketers to showcase their talent. It has helped promote cricket, helped promote sport. It has made people's dreams come true… made crorepatis out of cricketers. These kind of leagues would help other sports in India too," says Durrani. "I wish I could play in it," he quipped, before breaking into a chuckle. "It is just a case of a few corrupt people in the game, but I am sure they cannot tarnish the image of cricket.
"Everyone, from the electrician to the cricketer, is making so much money out of the IPL. I fail to understand why a few people resort to corrupt ways. There are other ways to make money. Why spoil the game? And why stoop so low in your own eyes?" said Sandhu. Did anyone ever approach him to spot-fix? "If you are strong, they won't even come near you. They (the bookies) knew I'm mad. They catch weak characters," he replied.
Much of the credit for the function goes to Khar Gymkhana general secretary Sanjay Devnani, vice president Vivek Devnani and Iqbal Bhaba, chairman of the cricket committee.
With all the news centered around the muck that surrounds the game these days, a gathering like this took one back to the days when cricket was, well, a gentleman's game after all!