Press boxes are like players’ dressing rooms, outsiders are discouraged from entering. Yet when some of them do enter, they raise the tone of the place.
I came on the scene too late to share a press box with Neville Cardus, but I suspect I might not have enjoyed the experience. I would have loved to get a coffee or something stronger for C. L. R. James had we reported together, but that wasn’t to be either.
Over the years, one did rub shoulders with the finest cricket writers and top players, but (in hindsight), on at least two occasions, I regret that the camera phone hadn’t yet been invented or the selfie become a part of daily life. The first was in the buildup to the Asian Games in 1982, when I first heard the song of the Games being played, and turned to see its composer, Pandit Ravi Shankar, sitting behind me. He wore a beatific smile and appeared thoroughly relaxed.
This story is from the March 23, 2019 edition of Sportstar.
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This story is from the March 23, 2019 edition of Sportstar.
Start your 7-day Magzter GOLD free trial to access thousands of curated premium stories, and 9,000+ magazines and newspapers.
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