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Starstruck: Imitating Geoffrey Boycott gave me Kapil Dev and Tiger Pataudi as friends | By Vikram Sathaye
Recalling how his imitation skills played out tactically well - Vikram Sathaye remembers how he bonded with legendary Indian cricketers Kapil Dev and Tiger Pataudi.
Vikram Sathaye with Kapil Dev (Source: Viu/ YouTube screengrab)
I loved imitating Geoffrey Boycott.
This skill got me, two friends, in the form of the great Tiger Pataudi & Kapil Dev during my first cricket assignment at the Cricket World Cup in 2003.
On the second day of landing in Capetown (South Africa), I ended up having a glass of wine with the greats - Tiger Pataudi & Kapil Paaji.
Dream come true for a cricket lover, isn't it?
The only thing I would do on these lovely evenings was to imitate Geoffrey in front of Tiger's English & Aussie friends.
I was loving the attention too, mind you. After all, Geoffrey was giving me access to the world of cricket in a peculiar way.
Although I interacted very briefly with Geoffrey, the one I enjoyed spending time with the most was Ian Chappel (Ex-Aussie Captain ).
The Aussies would have great stories on Geoffrey & his miserly behavior both on & off the field. Apparently, there was a competition within the England side as to who would get Geoffrey run out to stop the trauma of watching him bat for hours without scoring.
The best line on Geoffrey is attributed to Dennis Lillee (Australian fast bowler).
He said, "Geoffrey is the only person in the world who has fallen in love with himself at a young age & has remained faithful ever since."
