Journalists turn cricketers !

At the Sprawling Sardar Patel stadium it was one more cricket tournament today. Player after player played his role to his best. Cheer girls continued to cheer both players as well as a small crowd of spectators.

Fours, sixes and outs were cheered by drumbeating. Members of the playing team danced as cheer girls responded to hits and misses on the ground. This is how the members of the Gujarat Media Club had its cricket carnival at the ground.

The players literally toiled, because majority of them were not players in any sense. However, in India given a chance anyone can play cricket and so our friends of the GMC could. It was more to bring together the members and their families around the stumps.

It was a cricket tournament of the journalists, by the journalists and for the journalists. Except handful of outsiders it was purely a journalistic affair right upto spectator. It had a commentator, a practicing doctor. Assisted by some journalists, Dr. Parag Shah did commentary for more than four hours (with more than hour lunch break).

His running commentary was frequently punctuated by his musical interludes when he sang a line or two of old film songs. No doubt the free commentary of Dr. Shah had this untold rider. I will run your show, you lend me yours ears for my songs filled commentary. And he would turn a singer to lift sagging spirits of people on and off the field.

Presence of GCA president Narhari Amin, Hitesh Patel who is known by the name Pochi and Ameesh Saheba, of ICC empires panel gave the event a real cricket look. Defence PRO Satish Menon, Railway PRO Jayant Jitendra were there to add colour to the media event.

There was a guest spectator, Milind Ghatwai of Indian Express presently posted in Bhopal. Ghatwai who is here for the crisis management in the Ahmedabad edition strolled into the stadium to meet old friends. Certainly, a good Sunday for Milind .

At the end of the day, journalists and their families returned home with some kind of satisfaction. Some had known about families of others. Some developed new contacts. For the outgoing team of the GMC office bearers it was a task accomplished, agenda of the tenure finished!

It was a 10 over knock out tournament GMC had organised with the sponsorship of the IOC. There were four teams. The team which lifted the trophy had representatives of Gujarat and Hindi newspapers.