India left-arm spinner Pragyan Ojha, Dr. G. K. Harinath, CEO of Cricket New South Wales, V V S Laxman and Indian team manager Shivlal Yadav met at the Sydney Cricket Ground on Monday. The Hindu.
Sydney keeps its date with history when the India-Australia second Test that starts on Tuesday happens to be the 100th Test at this hallowed venue ‘Down Under’. And, Hyderabadis too have something to rejoice for being part of this piece of great moment in Test cricket.
Dr. G. K. Harinath, CEO of Cricket New South Wales, is a Hyderabadi who settled long ago in Australia and is now also a Board member. “I am proud to be part of this historic moment. There is so much in the air every time the SCG hosts an international match,” he says in an exclusive chat with The Hindu from Sydney, on the eve of the 100th Test match.
Then there is the Hyderabad’s star batsman V. V. S. Laxman, whose romance with SCG is now part of cricketing folklore thanks to his memorable hundreds on previous tours.
In fact, Dr. Harinath met the three Hyderabadis at the SCG this morning – Laxman, Indian team manager Shivlal Yadav and left-arm spinner Pragyan Ojha. “It was a very touching encounter. It is always great to meet someone from our own city who heads Cricket NSW and is also a Board member of Cricket Australia. Honestly, I felt really proud when we met him,” says Shivlal.
Dr. Harinath also reveals that Laxman’s father Dr. V. Shantharam happened to be his classmate and thereby he has a special relationship with the elegant Indian batsman’s family.
“V. V. S. is immensely popular in Sydney. What impresses me the most is that he is a gentleman besides being a world-class player. People like him contribute a lot to the promotion of cricket across the globe,” the NSW Chief Executive Officer commented.
“Sydney has a seating capacity of 50,000 and it is a picturesque venue with the backdrop of Harbour Bridge and the famous Opera House apparently being the USP of this wonderful stadium. It has a fantastic tradition of always sporting wickets and people love to come to an iconic ground which also has world-class facilities,” he explained.
“The most memorable moment for me is to be conferred the Life Membership of Cricket New South Wales considering that only 120 were privileged to get it so far in its 150-year history,” a proud Dr. Harinath pointed out.
Even as the focus will be on Sachin Tendulkar looking for the elusive 100th century in international cricket, Hyderabadis too will be “eagerly awaiting that great moment and be part of history”.
“I sincerely hope that the great Indian maestro (Sachin) will score his 100th century here. As an Australian of Indian Origin and as the Chairman of CNSW, it adds extra dimension to my life and at the end I would like to see this as a contest between two great teams. India with its passion and millions of supporters and the Aussies with a never-say-die attitude,” he concludes.
source: http://www.TheHindu.com / News> Cities> Hyderabad / by V. V. Subrahmanyam / Hyderabad, January 03rd, 2012