Madan Lal Sharma

Talking about Madan Lal in my previous post made me dig through the remanants of my scrapbook of youth. If you remember, I mentioned that almost 90% of what I had crumbled to neglect, poor storage ( forgotten in a storage box ) and vagaries of time.

I found one scratched and crumbly photo which I had to edit on a software program to be made presentable. Let me share with you.


Madan Lal is curiously the only cricketer who played on the international stage with whom I have had many many interactions in various settings. From coaching tips to Mohan Meakins, from club cricket to ceremonies, from being a spectator in a stadium to now being a spectator to his coaching my son currently: It has been a continuous bumping into each other at different times.

Some of my earlier photographs, and all my autographs of players I have met, are all gone.

I'm not going to talk about his stats here - there are plenty of sites for that - I'm just looking back in time.

I played for my school, club and organisation at one time.

My club was called Gary Cricketers; no surprises there about the name and you can imagine how we tried to play from that name; and we had a protocol of inviting Ranji and international players to lend us tips. Chetan Chauhan, Arun Khurana (Delhi slo and schoolmate), Rajinder Singh Hans "Baby" (UP Slo and selected once for India), Madan Lal, Rakesh Shukla(Delhi), Bish, and many others have graced a morning, afternoon or evening at our club nets.

Madan Lal was there too around 1976 or so with tips.

Then there was a time I was visiting Mohan Meakins when very young...they had a lovely cricket ground (Madan Lal is in the DDCA executive due to his heading the Mohan Meakins club) and I couldn't resist then to wander onto it. I was simply running around and enjoying the lush grass (it was winter) and was just nearing the scoreboard when someone stepped out from behing that and hailed me. It was Madan Lal in a suit with a checked tie and wanted to know what I was up to. I told him I was enjoying the ambience and reminded him that he had visited our club some time back.

He understood, smiled and walked around with me for a while. Then he graciously offered to take us all on a conducted tour of the factory and never once did he show any tiresomeness at our curiosity. Since most of us were not yet of legal age, he didn't offer the Golden Eagle to us but was generous with their fruit processing products and snacks section.

Then there was a time soon after the '83 World Cup, when my active cricketing days were history to the exigencies of that period and a future I was looking to build. I limited myself to the odd college appearance and sports quizzes which were a rage those days. The only salvageable photo I had was of him presenting the winner's recognition of an inter-college sports quiz which I have attached below. That's Andy with me...my good friend and partner in a winning sports quiz team at that time. (We were regular college fest hounds those days and won various events besides quizzes).

Andy grew up to be a top-notch ophthalmologist from PGI Chandigarh and was Associate Professor at Indira Gandhi Institute, Patna, before migrating to England where he is now. Great chap!

Andy, if you are reading this blog from England, this one's for the golden times!



I bumped into Madan Lal on the playing field too frequently during the DDCA club tournaments and leagues. He was always a good person and ever-ready if any advice was sought.

Time passed on and many years later, he now is my son's coach! This is him (below) circa 2007. I am now a spectator again but to his coaching.



He goes about the job unfussily and quietly. Many felt he comes across as an uncomfortable communicator on TV, but I can tell you, he's a wonderful communicator otherwise. He has patience, dedication (still), wisdom, and easily makes the young ones understand what they need to. He does a great job with them and always a good natured man. That's how I always remember him...gracious, good natured and smiling like that early winter morning on the Mohan Meakins ground.



Here he is making a point. And that's Manu Nayyar (former Delhi opening bat and skip and one-time school-team-mate) with the glasses on. He is the best coach besides Maddi pa there, and is also now a Selector for the Delhi Ranji team.