Not even 10 months ago, we had shifted from Faridabad to Gurgaon so it was a quick change for me but to my surprise, from the usual unpacking and arranging task my parents would take up, they chose to get the TV setup and watch a cricket match. I knew about cricket by then, might have played with my friends in a gully, and also might have watched it on TV here and there but never saw my parents being so serious about it. Slowly I understood from their conversations that it was a World Cup final and India was playing Australia. I remember Australia playing so well that they lost only 2 wickets in the 50 overs and India was nowhere close to chasing it. A disappointing end to the much-anticipated match, what was more surprising was when I reached school the next day, everyone was discussing how Ricky Ponting had the spring in his bat that made him play so well.

This is my first memory of cricket- the 2003, World Cup Finals, Australia defeating India by a huge margin. From that day I followed cricket diligently. From opening the newspaper from the backside to read the sports page first, to collecting cards of players and spending time reading about every possible stat, I went crazy about the game. From that day, I remember where I was when Dhoni debuted, Irfan Pathan opened, we lost in the 2007 ODI World Cup, Yuvraj’s Six 6s, 2007 T20 World Cup, 2011,2015 and 2019 WC, etc. I remember it all.

It’s not like I didn't dream of becoming a cricketer like every other Indian but as I shifted to Pune, access to playing professional cricket was very limited due to our school not having a team or even wanting to have a team. Yet I remember it was my 8th birthday and I love birthdays, I love calling my friends over for a party but I couldn't because I had chickenpox and the only gift I wanted was a cricket kit with stumps and a ball. So even though the playing was limited to the gully, watching cricket and understanding the sport was always on high priority.

I have fought, and been scolded for watching this game at crucial junctures of life. Be it watching Test matches at 3.30 am or just planning my day according to match days, I have done it all for this game in the past 2 decades. This game has taught me a lot, be it patience, fitness, focus, or even teamwork, I always draw inspiration from the smallest of cricketing events and try to cultivate it in my life. I can talk about cricket for hours and hours with anyone without getting bored.

It has been exactly 20 years of madly, dearly, and truly loving this sport and watching and supporting India. I imagined writing about how life has come full circle and we defeated Australia in the World Cup final but we couldn’t. One of the best Indian ODI cricket teams had an off day at work and we couldn’t. For sure one of the most heartbreaking moments as a fan because this is very close to a Dream Team but this is what it is.

Leaving it here for all This is how Cricket came into my life 20 years ago. Thank you cricket, you have taught me to love deeply before I take a detox for a while.

Gyaan- Cricket teams are often attributed and given references to showcase how India is doing at a global level. Be it to showcase the calm winning mindset of team Dhoni or the aggressive in-your-face mindset of team Kohli. All I can conclude is ‘we as a country have arrived but we are yet to win the important battles’. IT will only happen once we ‘believe’ we can and that belief needs to be cultivated at the grassroots level. More on this maybe sometime else.

I didn't know anything about Tennis. All I knew was that they use a bigger badminton racquet and play with softballs that are costly (but amazing) for cricket. I resisted a lot but my parents were firm as the tennis court was quite near to our place. Dint enjoy it instantly but at least I knew as soon as I reached home from school at 3.30, that I was not aimlessly watching cartoons or playing computer games but getting ready to go play tennis. Every day without a holiday 4 pm to 6 pm.

I would always be the first to reach and last to leave the court. I used to feel bad if someone came before me and started doing warmups. Almost daily, the last couple of periods and my bus journey were me just thinking about tennis and how I’ll play a specific shot. That is when I started watching Tennis. I remember watching the French Open’06 which Nadal beat Federer comfortably & thus began the liking. Also, he is a leftie (it was difficult for me to play them) & has a great forehand (my favorite shot) coupled with him becoming my favorite player.

So when I was promoted from the junior batch to the senior one, I forced my parents to get me a Babolat racquet because Nadal played with it. That was & still is one of the most expensive sports equipment I owned & took care of it like a baby. Be it any holiday, we had found ways of jumping over the fence into the court and playing for hours. In the rainy season (which is about 3 months in Pune) I with a close friend used to reach every day and try wiping the water to the drainage & playing with wet balls. All of this is just to imitate & follow Nadal’s passion. Federer was always the GOAT but to break him Nadal had to work always an inch harder. That was the inspiration, that if you work an inch harder you’ll get there. Tennis and Nadal played a deep role in my childhood.

The Rebel in me always loved the underdog and cheered for him. I played tennis for 5yrs almost daily, and was fairly good at it but then obviously every middle-class family story “IIT prep” happened, and had to let it go. Tried getting back to it when I was 20, after almost a 5-year gap but realized that I had lost all the fitness to play that sport. I’ve enjoyed playing almost all sports but I still believe Tennis is one of the most physically challenging sports.

To be relevant for 18yrs besides 2 very gifted talents what Rafa Nadal achieved today makes me emotional but moreover, BELIEVE that ‘not trying’ is never an option. Emotional but looking forward to the 22nd Grand Slam now. #VamosRafa