THE INTERVIEW THAT I MISSED

It was a blazing knock played in body-numbing cold of January 2001, by an India discard. I was stationed with the TWI crew at Mohali, and brief was to somehow get exclusive interviews of Yuvraj Singh and RS Sodhi. The match, which witnessed a superb 150+ by Virender Sehwag, was a crucial Duleep Trophy encounter between North and West Zones.

Critical encounter it was, as India-Australia series was just about a month away. Big names like Zaheer, Rathore, Yuvraj, RS Sodhi, Dinesh Mongia were either trying to cement, or bag a place in the Indian squad. They looked too focused to pay any attention to TWI crew, and the situation was looking grim in terms of getting these two interviews. Of course, that nobody wanted any controversy did not help the matters.

Meanwhile, Sehwag was looking a forlorn figure. For this match, he was to come at 5th or 6th down and that was certainly not an ideal position to score big and impress the Indian selectors.

But, as the fate would have it, it turned out to be Sehwag's day. A brilliant 150+ at over run-a-ball saved North the blushes. It was a knock which even Ganguly mentioned in a later interview to TWI (a few days before the Australia series started but even he forgot Sehwag's name and used the word `Delhi batsman').

Soon after that knock, I was tempted to interview Sehwag instead of Yuvraj or Sodhi, but refrained from doing so as I felt it might not be carried. After all, it was a 1st class match and nobody felt Sehwag had a realistic chance of getting into the Indian team against Australia. I certainly did not want to interview Sehwag, and then disappoint him by not carrying it in the programme on DD.

On the last day of the match. I managed both Sodhi and Yuvraj and did not regret not interviewing Sehwag. Though, in the hindsight, I believe that I missed the most important exclusive interview of my career, which was there for the taking.

Of course, a month after Sourav's interview, Sehwag was drafted into the Indian team for Bangalore ODI against Australia. He scored 50 and bagged three wickets. The `Delhi batsman' was reborn and there was no looking back after that.