Jaipur: Rajasthan Royals skipper Rahul Dravid and actress Sharmila Tagore launched ‘Pataudi: Nawab of Cricket’, a book on former India captain Mansoor Ali Khan ‘Tiger’ Pataudi written by Suresh Menon at the DSC Jaipur Literature Fest in Jaipur on Saturday.
The book release received a cheerful applause from a huge crowd present at Diggi Palace. Sharmila Tagore, wife of late M.A.K. Pataudi, thanked the crowed and the writer of the book. “I am glad to be here for this unforgettable occasion and deeply indebted to Mr. Menon for this book. I read each word of this wonderful book and it made me emotional. I hope readers will like it also,” Sharmila added.
Rajasthan Royals skipper Rahul Dravid praised the book and the author, and stressed for more books on legendary cricketers of the past. “I am very happy to see a book on legendary cricket M.A.K. Pataudi and this book will surely encourage readers to know more about cricket and cricketers. We are thankful to Mr. Menon and I wish we will see more books on this sport and life of cricketers,” he said.
“M.A.K. Pataudi was a great batsman, fielder, captain and above all, he was a great cricketer. Moreover, he was a great team player and knew how to bring all players together to play as a team. Because of his team building, India registered their first Test series win overseas against New Zealand in 1968,” stated Menon.
Suresh Menon is the Editor of Wisden India Almanack and widely regarded as the most literary of India's cricket writers. He is one of the youngest newspaper editors in India, was still in his 20s when he became Sports Editor of The Pioneer and then Sports Editor of the undivided The Indian Express in New Delhi.
The book launch was followed by a session presented by Rajasthan Royals – Corner of a Distant Playing Field – in which Dravid was joined by Ian Buruma, a Dutch writer and academician, and moderated by Rajdeep Sardesai, son of legendary cricketer Dilip Sardesai and Editor-in-Chief of CNN-IBN.
Rahul Dravid on Indian Premier League:
“The Indian Premier League brought many changes in Indian cricket along with tough challenges to adapt quickly to the shorter format of the game, changes in game plan and quick solutions. It changes the environment of the dressing room as we meet players from different countries. It has been changing relationships among cricketers for the last five years and we understand them better.”
“For example, I was never close to Jacques Kallis (South African cricketer). We just met during the series and said a hi-hello to each other. He also talks less and we both never get enough time to talk. Now, due the IPL, we got enough opportunities to talk and shared our views on cricket during our stint with Royal Challengers Bangalore. We are in touch with each other now.”
Rahul Dravid on celebrity status of cricketer:
“Living like as a celebrity is not so tough. As you play at the highest level, attention and celebrity status becomes part of our life. Nowadays it’s very easy to get celebrity status in cricket. In the early days, you had to be like Sunil Gavaskar or Kapil Dev to draw huge attention and became popular.”
Rahul Dravid on Women's Cricket:
“Women cricket still has a long way to go. The BCCI is doing its bit and encouraging women's cricket in all states. It’s a challenge, not easy to bring more girls in cricket. But the development is in process and Indian cricket fraternity is encouraging girls to take cricket.”
“India is hosting the ICC Women’s Cricket World Cup, which is a proud moment for us and it is getting good attention. Competition at all levels in women’s cricket has improved a lot and we have a very good team and legendary players.”
Rahul Dravid on DSC Jaipur Literature Fest:
“I am very glad be here and liking this festival. Very few people these days read books and have interest in reading. It’s really very nice to see the crowd and their immense interests in books and authors. It’s a memorable experience for me.”
Rahul Dravid on cricket reaching all parts of the country:
“It’s very good see cricket is reaching all parts of the country and players such as Mahender Singh Dhoni, Suresh Raina, Praveen Kumar are coming from smaller cities. The BCCI is making efforts to take cricket in all corners of the country and improving the infrastructure. Good facilities are also accessible to smaller towns now and local coaching centres are providing the best facilities, which are helping cricketers to sharpen their skills at an early age.”
“The barrier between metropolitan and small-town cricketers has broken now as young cricketers are playing more inter-city and inter-district matches. They are visiting other states for tournaments and getting better exposure.”
By Indian Sports News Network
