How India won in England, 2007
Gautam Bhimani, roving reporter for ESPN’s TV coverage, is the man who takes the world of the team into the homes of the fans. He kept a tour diary of India’s 2007 win over England for SPIN
July 3 Glasgow
Team India pack their bags for the English summer after wrapping up a 2-1 win over South Africa in Belfast. First stop, though, is Scotland. The team flies in to face Pakistan in a one-day game, The Friendship Cup, to celebrate the two nations’ 60 years of independence. The proceeds of the match are to go to the Prince’s Trust.
The team, which had gone from a monsoon-soaked India to a wet and wintry Ireland before arriving in a drizzly Scotland, was not overly surprised to find the match called off. But it didn’t dampen spirits. Summer is the season for birthdays in India’s cricketing universe. My own was on June 25, the same day that India celebrated its 75th birthday as an international cricketing nation. Mahendra Singh Dhoni would be the next (July 7), closely followed by Sourav Ganguly (July 8), Sunil Gavaskar (July 10). Team manager Chandu Borde, running the tour in the absence of a head coach, would blow out a fair few candles – more than 70, in fact – at Lord’s. Plenty of opportunities for celebration.
As broadcasters, we have a good relationship with the players. They may be superstars at home but they are a very down to earth, normal bunch of guys. The team are forbidden from giving press interviews on this tour, except at close of play. Cricket is such big news in India that players have to be careful of print journalists looking for the next big story. But TV can’t be misquoted and, because of the nature of our coverage, there is arguably a greater element of trust with us.
Our links with the team are all the stronger because our commentator Ravi Shastri went on the recent tour to Bangladesh as the team’s cricket manager. For this series is back with us. I think he made a big difference to the team: he’s someone who can relate to the guys, the perfect person for the coach’s job – but obviously his media work comes first. Because we weren’t showing the Bangladesh series, he thought, ‘What the hell’ and went over to help out. He helped bring out their aggression a little bit.
July 4 London
Fly south. But only stay in the capital briefly. The first real stop in England will be on the south coast. Hove’s a good place to start a tour: Sussex County Cricket Club has plenty of Indian history. It has been graced by the likes of Ranjitsinghji, Duleepsinghji, as well as the Nawab of Pataudi. Within a few days the teams will begin a contest for the Pataudi Trophy, celebrating 75 years of clashes between the two nations.
In all modesty, I probably get to sign as many autographs on the streets in India as the players do. The players, of course, don’t get to get out so often. So the fans over-compensate by going after anyone connected with the players who does walk down the street. In a typical place, they’ll mob me. In a small town, it’s serious. It shows how big the game is that I’m just someone who reports on the game and this kind of thing happens to me.
As for the players, England is not quite the safe haven from their adoring fans that you might imagine. There’s enough fans around to mean they might be spotted somewhere. There’s someone round every corner. The players need to be somewhere like the Gold Coast in Brisbane; that was the last time I saw the whole team out at the mall, completely chilled out.
Socially, the ringleaders tend to be Yuvraj Singh and – when he’s in the team – Harbhajan Singh. Zaheer Khan is quieter but he’s in that group, too. Sreesanth will be sat, quietly, in the corner, wearing his glasses. If there’s not a crowd, he won’t be performing.
There has been a tendency for players to socialise according to their regions but, really, that’s to do with them looking for different kinds of food. Now, it’s more a case of the younger players going around together, regardless of whether they’re from the north or the south.
July 7
Hove, four-day game v Sussex
At last, sunshine. We are covering the warm-up games live – a first – and Hove has laid on gorgeous summer weather, providing relief to both the Indian team and the locals, none of whom have seen the sun for weeks. Travelling with Team India always means we renew some memorable acquaintances – and the arrival of Farokh Engineer makes quite a difference to the liveliness in the commentary box as well as the amount of space available to work in.
Next to pitch up is Ian Bishop, minus luggage! West Indies had beaten England at Trent Bridge, wrapping up the one-day series 2-1, and Bish was joining us straight from the game. So hard did he celebrate with the boys that he only realised that his luggage was still in Nottingham when he was 70 miles down the M1.
July 10
Warm-up stalemate
The match ends in a frustrating draw. Sussex, set 273 to win, end the day on 190/9, the last pair holding out for nine overs, with Robin Martin-Jenkins making 45*. July 13-15
Chelmsford, v England Lions
The town of Chelmsford conjures up two names for me: Guglielmo Marconi, who set up the world’s first wireless factory there, and Graham Gooch, who set up his own run factory. We were fortunate to have the latter as part of our commentary team – and he was another member of the tour’s birthday honours list (July 23), though many of us patriotic Indians were tempted to make him blow out 333 candles for having inflicted misery on our bowlers at Lord’s 17 years earlier.
At Chelmsford, Sreesanth does something I’ve never seen before. Not only does he chatter to the batsmen when he’s bowling but he also makes a point of running in from his spot in the field to talk to them when he’s not bowling.
In the commentary box, we get to hear the stump mikes; he was saying to Owais Shah – “You’re really fighting for your spot in the team aren’t you? Let’s see if you get in.”
There was one over when Sreesanth was fielding right on the boundary, at deep fine leg, and between deliveries he would run up to the batsman, chirp a bit and then go all the way back to the boundary. I’ve seen bowlers having a word – but this was a first for me Sreesanth is excitable. His sister is a dancer, so performing is obviously in the blood. To curb it might affect his game. Rahul Dravid has told him to be careful not to end up in the match referee’s office. But it’s his style. He is pretty much the only Test cricketer to come from Kerala, the idyllic southern coast region. He’s a superstar there. Kerala is very big on cinema and you do get the idea that Sreesanth could easily have been an actor if he had not become a cricketer.
July 17 London
After a drawn game with the Lions, the team eases into life in the capital for the serious business of Test cricket. This is when the Indian “Mamu” makes an appearance. This is a phenomenon that needs explaining. Since Indians have not, historically, been the world’s best travellers, the lure of home-cooked food has always been more than welcome, particularly for the increasing number of vegetarians. India’s global roaming population ensures that this is never more than a phone call away.
Not a phone call to the local Indian take away (which, in London, would likely turn out to be a Bangladeshi restaurant, in any case) but a call to some local cricket fans who thrive in the trade of food for autographs. A fair deal, you would have to say. These fans build up a rapport, even a long-term relationship, and provide culinary relief to the players and their families. It’s a species that can be found wherever on Earth the Indian cricket footprint stretches.
The Mamus are cricket-mad fans – not necessarily rich – who just want to look after the team. Players go to Mamus’ houses; or the Mamus bring food to the players in big containers.
The only one to avoid the Mamus is Sachin Tendulkar, who is also probably the
only self-confessed foodie in the team. Not only does he
have two restaurants named after him in Mumbai, but he was also actively involved in choosing the menus available in them. On tour, he tends
to be off on his own food trail,
far away from the clutches of the Mamu.
July 20 First Test, Lord’s
Team India have left the good weather in Brighton and, on Friday, Lord’s witnesses the kind of tropical deluge more associated with Mumbai. But, remarkably, the players are on the field soon after, thanks to the million-pound baby that is the pride of the Lord’s ground staff – a drainage system that should be a shining example for other rainy parts of the cricket world.
Around the media centre, which is a great place to hang out what with all the rain around, there are cricket captains galore… Gooch, Brearley, Gower, Atherton, Gatting, Benaud, Hussain, Shastri, Chappell, Gavaskar, knighted heroes like Sir Botham… and a few unexpected guests like Boris Becker, a first-time visit to the cricket for the former Wimbledon champion. Memories of bumping into Sir Paul McCartney here five years ago came flooding back.
July 22 Test goes with a swing
On the penultimate day, I had a strong sense of déjà vu as more than half of Lord’s chose to ignore the cricket and turned their attention to the golf in the British Open which was heading for an exciting finish at Carnoustie. Eleven years earlier I was at Lord’s waiting for my school mate Sourav Ganguly to complete his debut Test hundred. I remembered this quiet kid at school who had a fierce passion for football. (His elder brother Snehasis, also a stylish left hander, was always the one who was said to be likely to play cricket for the country one day.) On that day in 1996, diehard Bengalis did not budge from their seats but most of Lord’s had made their way to the Nursery End’s giant screens to watch England play Spain in a nail-biting penalty shoot out in Euro 96.
India’s lack of a coach has attracted criticism from many quarters at home. But they seem to be working it well. Chandra Borde, the manager, is like a senior statesman. The players look up to him. Dravid, obviously, is in charge but he has senior guys like Tendulkar and Ganguly to fall back on. It’s a nice balance. there’s a lot of seniors and a lot of effusive juniors. It makes for a perfect unit.
July 23 Escaping with a draw
At the end of day five the heavens have the last laugh (or more of an Indian snigger) as a final persistent drizzle denies England a certain victory. That evening, I reminisce about the game with Sreesanth, who survived some tense final moments. All he could talk about (other than the weather) was his new nickname, generously doled out by Kevin Pietersen, when he walked out at the bitter end. His new set of contact lenses had not arrived from India, and, as a result he went out to bat with spectacles and was greeted by: “Come on boys, let’s finish this off. Harry Potter just came in to bat.”
July 26 Nottingham
From the great escape at the spiritual home of cricket the Indians head for one of many social escapades, this time at the Notts County Football Club banquet hall, a regular feature whenever the team tours Nottingham. We meet local businessman Nat Puri – a man never shy to demonstrate his benevolence. This time, he hands out a fat cheque to Sachin Tendulkar (like he needs the moolah). Three years ago, during the NatWest Challenge, he did the same for Virender Sehwag. But more than the money, the occasion is another excuse for the team to indulge in some good Indian food without falling back on the Mamus. Physio and diet man John Gloster looks on as his strict food regimen goes out the window.
This is a family occasion. The India team travels with a big entourage of wives and children. Vijeta Dravid, Shailaja Laxman, Dona Ganguly and Mrs Powar are all there with kids in tow. The two wives of the openers, Mrs Jaffer and Mrs Karthik, are also there. While it’s mostly the wives who attend to the kids, offie Ramesh Powar takes charge of putting his daughter to sleep, the doting dad looking very different from his on-field avatar of long flowing hair and distinct bright red Oakleys.
July 27 Second Test,
Trent Bridge
The same rain that rescued India at Lord’s lends a helping hand at Trent Bridge, as conditions on day one make life difficult for the hosts. They are behind the eight-ball for the rest of the match. It is a game filled with drama, both on and off the field. Players on both sides improve their vocabulary. A few chewy sweets provoke Zaheer Khan to lead India to a famous win.
I spoke to Zaheer about the whole jelly bean thing afterwards and he was philosophical. He said: “Yes, it happened, let’s not get too much into it. But, basically, if they do it to me again and it makes me perform like this, then bring on the jelly beans!”
The team has surprised everyone with the way they’ve played. To come on a full tour like this without a coach, the media were ready to put the boot in. But they’ve been much more cohesive and upbeat than the Indian media had expected. And that’s shown in the results. And I think that’s going to carry on.
July 31 Party time
After India’s win – their fifth in England – Ravi interviews Venkatesh Prasad and Robin Singh. He introduces the piece by saying; “There’s been a lot of talk about who should be the coach. Well, I’ve got the bowling coach and the fielding coach here, we’ve just won a Test. Is there a problem? I don’t think so.”
Minutes after the victory, the Indian team dressing room is turned into what could have been a pub in Delhi or Bangalore. Batsmen turn into DJs, bowlers into bartenders, as Bollywood hits are accompanied by celebratory liquids.
Test victories overseas are a rarity for the team as the intensity of the celebrations prove. At times like these, Yuvraj usually takes charge of the music in the dressing room and even the best efforts of someone like VVS Laxman (who prefers things a little quieter) go in vain as the dressing room discotheque gets into action.
It’s a great occasion – but things don’t get quite as mad as they did in Jo’burg last December, after India won their first Test on South African soil. Then, even though cameras, spectacles and mobile phones were under threat from the amount of champagne and beer that flowed freely, no-one seemed to care.
The team pretty much trashed the dressing room then. Trent Bridge is left intact. In Jo’burg, the amount of lager that made its way into my hair meant that I could dispense with shampoo for a week – the main culprit being Mahi (MS Dhoni). My shoes were ruined. Sreesanth entertained everyone by providing action replays of his now legendary bat-wave dance at the expense of Andre Nel.
Trent Bridge was slightly quieter. Ravi went down for a glass of champagne. There were a lot of family members there; more than at Jo’burg, which may explain the difference in the level of antics. Little Samit Dravid was at both, looking on at the grown-up children at play, wondering what exactly it was his dad does for a living.
August 1 The morning after
The jelly-bean story dominates the headlines… Team India notes that when England’s cricketers tour India, a phenomenon known as ‘Delhi belly’ has been known to strike from time to time. At Trent Bridge, the hosts decided to return the favour and inflict a case of ‘jelly belly’. Needless to say, it failed.
