Life is like a game of dice and no one can stop what destiny holds for you. Even as the nation bids Sachin Tendulkar a teary farewell, here comes the story of Anil Gurav, who at one point of time was hailed as the ‘raising star’ of cricket.
His name was taken in the same breadth as Viv Richards and Sunil Gavaskar and he had everything that would make a promising cricketer. It is said that the famed coach Ramakant Achrekar placed a coin first on the stumps of Gurav, which, in the Mumbai Cricket circles meant that he was the chosen one. So, much before the phenomenon of Sachin started, there was Gurav on the horizon.
Even before the curly-haired prodigy from Shivaji Park came to be reckoned, Gurav was seen as the champion in the making. It is said that a young Sachin was in awe of the ‘cut and hook’ shot by Gurav and even took tips from him to play a power game.
However, life took a cruel turn for Gurav and he lost his footing. Today, three decades later, Gurav lives in a small slum in Nalasopara. And it is for no fault of his, but his brother’s. In a truly heart-wrenching story, Gurav and his mother had to endure police lockups and beating for years after his brother got engaged as a shooter with a notorious underworld gang.
This was followed by an addiction to cheap liquor which not only spoiled his body but also severely affected his game.
Today, Gurav lives the life of a recluse in the slums defeated by his fate surrounded by past glory.
He has one dream though. To meet Sachin Tendulkar and ask for the bat he had lent him way back in the good old days.
But will that return his life?
