Shane Warne, You Rock!

By Padmini Sundaram padmisun@yahoo.co.in

When you are on the wrong side of thirty, it helps to have three teenaged girls accompany you on a family holiday to Goa to make you feel young at heart and in spirit. And it isn’t often that four young ladies end up sharing a hotel swimming pool with the likes of Shane Warne, Shane Watson, Graeme Smith. I guess lady luck was kind to us.!What began as a gateway for my two older sister’s, me and our respective spouses, children and mother was a most exhilairtating holiday What we had’nt bargained for was the sheer joy, brazenness and zest of the teenagers ( my three nieces) and our encounter with the magnetic Shane Warne! We also learnt three lessons in leadership from him which is what was the greatest takeaway for me and one which I am keen o share here.

As soon as we reached Taj Fort Aguada resort the teenagers got a whiff that the Rajasthan Royals were camping in the hotel too. (This was just before the Jaipur blasts happened. ) No one required binoculars to look for Shane Warne and Watson, for my three nieces were tracking their every movement! And lo-behold they hijacked Warne while he was on his way to the spa. Ignoring our raised eyebrows and plea to give the man his privacy, they rushed and asked him for a Photo! Warne obliged with a photograph but subtly scurried them off. Lesson one, handling intrusion politely but firmly. The girls toed the line after that and kept their distance! The next day Warne was by the pool. I am sure he knew there were atleast 30 pair of eyes watching his moves including, watch him sunbathe. The man was completely composed, and yes fit as a fiddle, his physique belying his thirty-eight years. He went about all his tasks, the swim, the drying up and the works absolutely poised. Lesson Two, Complete oneness with the task at hand and shutting off everything else around.

Later in the evening, Warne and his team mates were having an early dinner in an Italian Restaurant. Coincidently I was having a quite dinner with my mother and two sisters’ there too. Warne’s group of three were neck deep in conversation while enjoying the delectable cuisine. His manager just then conveyed the news of the terror blasts at Jaipur . Warne anguished cry still rings in my ears. The player’s quickly finished their meal and returned to their rooms. Thereafter we followed Warnes and his teams fortunes on telly and we weren’t surprised that Warne’s team soon went on to beat Deccan Chargers royally, in the next match and the line that they said was that this victory was for the people of Jaipur who had seen so much pain. Remember Warne was an outsider and there was immense pressure from family of every foreign player back home to immediately return home. Prize money not withstanding extreme fear can lead to drastic actions.. Lesson three: Complete bonding and concern for one’s environment. Conviction to stand by one’s team and courage to execute under pressure.

We had planned a holiday to Goa but were blessed with precious moments with one of Crickets and now IPLs greatest Legend.

Thank you Shane Warne for making my summer holiday truly special. And as the girls rightly say “You Rock”! Yes a teenager knows best.