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January 1, 2009
Posted by Aakash Chopra on 01/01/2009 in Ranji Trophy, 2008-09
Welcoming the New Year around the country
Dear all, Wish you a very happy and prosperous New Year. For the last couple of years we have had the privilege of being at home on New Year's Eve but it hasn't always been like this. On the contrary we have almost always been away playing for our state teams at this time of the year.

If you've been following my blog you might remember that I'd written about the horrid time we had en route to Vijaywada. Incidentally we were in the same city for New Year's Eve as well. There was a small party organised in one of the posh hotels which was obviously not the hotel we were staying in. We paid our way to the party and found that it was a family affair with comedians, poets, singers taking the stage. There was some kind of a live band playing too but it was more of a sit-down function. It wasn't the ideal way to celebrate New Year's Eve but we made do with what we had.

I also remember a night in Mumbai. We were playing a Ranji Trophy game and I was not out on 46 at the close of play on the December 31. Hoping to score big the next morning, the options were very limited for me. I decided to stay indoors in the city of dreams while a few of my team-mates (the one's who had been dismissed, the bowlers and the ones not playing) had a blast. Well, I had a job to do, I told myself. As luck would have it, I got to my half-century off the first ball of the new year and got out soon after. I couldn't stop thinking that I too should have gone out last night. Hindsight is a wonderful thing indeed. My team-mates were quick to rub salt into my wounds by asking me sheepishly about what I did the previous night. I probably also became one of the only batsmen who had to wait a year to complete his half-century.

That was the last year a first-class match was scheduled on New Year's Eve as the captains voiced their displeasure during the captain's meeting (a meeting between the board officials and the captains of all state teams is held every year after the season) and to the board's credit they complied to it. Nowadays, we don't have any matches on Diwali and New Year's Eve. But my poor Christian fellows still end up staying away from home on Christmas as there's invariably a match scheduled for the 25th of December.

I also vividly remember being away from home for age-group tournaments and celebrating New Year's Eve in various other cities. One such time we were in Pune for some Under-19 one-day matches and we celebrated New Year's Eve with some tea at a roadside vendor's who stayed open till midnight. We prayed to God looking at the moon for some reason and went to bed soon thereafter; after all we had a match to play the next day. Looking back at all of it now, it seems so strange that we couldn't wish our parents or friends till the evening of the January 1, after the game got over. Those were the pre-mobile phone days.

Then there was the New Year's Eve at the Sydney harbour in 2003. The entire Indian team was on a cruise ship and I had the best time of my life.

Now that we're home and with our families, we must make the most of it as we really don't know what the future has in store for us. Though, personally, I wouldn't mind staying away on New Year's Eve with the Indian team once again.

Cheers.

Comments (10)
Posted by: Sidhanta Patnaik at January 1, 2009 7:22 PM

The best thing about being a part of a team is these little uncertainities of not knowing where you will be next
Every new year's eve you can expect yourself to be in a different situation altogether

Posted by: Abhik at January 2, 2009 2:51 AM

Nice portrayal of life on the first class circuit on such occasions. Good Read. Happy New Year!

Posted by: Thomas TDPA at January 2, 2009 4:46 AM

Dear Mr.Aakash
Wish you a very happy christmas and prosperous new year. To be in Indian team may be not easy maybe, but keep on playing with good spirit. You are going to be get rewarded for all your good works. Best Regards

Posted by: Puneet Miskeen at January 2, 2009 5:45 AM

Made wonderful reading ..Well done.
( atleast your new year parties have not been as bad as what I experienced last night )
Hope the last para comes true someday Akash. All the best.

Posted by: ErollFlyn at January 2, 2009 7:33 AM

Australia always has the Boxing Day test and 2nd/3rd January test matches. So their cricketers don't get to spend Christmas or New Year's with their family. I think cricket matches should be scheduled during school holidays so that the youngsters get a chance to watch. Also tickets should be sold to schools at a discount (for test matches) so that youngsters can watch the game and learn the basics.

Posted by: Yayathy at January 2, 2009 1:02 PM

Nice lines which mentioned about waiting a year to score a century. Its always fun to celebrate any occassion with the team. Best wishes to you and wish you a happy new year Akash.

Cheers!!!!!

Posted by: Neha J at January 2, 2009 1:03 PM

Hey
I absolutely love your blogs; great to hear from cricketers!
I just had a thought- do consider it.
Do you think your blogging is what's going against your selection?The major clause Indian cricketers have to abide by is the unofficial gag on them by the BCCI. You think your blogging is really what puts the Board off, whether or not the selectors are concerned?

It seems dumb at first, but give it a thought. BCCI has previously gagged Bhajju, and they didn't even spare someone like Gary Kirsten. You do understand..!:)

Keep up the good work though..!:)
Cheers
xD

Posted by: forgottenbest at January 2, 2009 11:08 PM

Happy 2009 Akash. Hope you get into the national team this year. Your chances are bright since I expect many of the current big names to flop in the seaming conditions of NZ. Its during such tours that the selectors wake up to the need for technically correct batsmen such as you and Dravid.

Posted by: Aakash at January 3, 2009 4:53 AM

Thanks guys for your feedback.
Of course, Australia always have a boxing day test match and I vividly remember my struggle to find a decent meal on the eve of the test match as everything was shut because of Christmas. Since I wasn't too comfortable with different cuisines at that time...the food at the hotel didn't excite me much. But yes, a match on the Boxing Day means being away from your family on Christmas. Perks of the job and to be honest I woudln't mind it if I'm playing for my country.
Neha, there's some food for thought and I did think about it about a year ago. That's why I didnt write a single word last year....but now i'm just following my heart....that's about it. :)
Thanks once again.
Cheers.

Posted by: abhinav at January 29, 2009 5:19 AM

hello Aakash Sir, i am a regular reader of this blog of yours and i will be lying if i say any thing else than i really relish all your postings. I really apperciate the way you narrate and relate your cricketing experiences with the everyday incidents of life. like the new years eve party incident, when you never went out to let your focus be still on the job you had to do on the next day morning, hilarious!!. Sir, but i would really take this opportunity to thank you and cricinfo, for letting us, the hardcore cricket fans know about the life of a first class cricketer also. how things work in the Ranji Trophy, Duleep Trophy. Its really nice to get to know all these things from a person who has been around for a decade now when it comes to First Class Cricket, ahve also had the previlige to be in the ranks of the Indian Test Cricket Team and has a lot of vigour and zeal in him to repeat and re-live his deams.

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Aakash Chopra opened for India in 10 Tests, forming a potent all-Delhi combination with Virender Sehwag during India's tour of Australia in 2003-04. He also made his mark as an exceptional close-in fielder. He writes columns for the Hindustan Times and Cricinfo, and is the author of Beyond the Blues, his season diary for 2007-08, when Delhi became Ranji champions. His website is here, and his Twitter feed here
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