The Great Game Called Cricket...

It was a sight for the Gods. Four legends - Amitabh Bachchan, Sunil Gavaskar, Gundappa Vishwanath and Sachin Tendulkar - came together on
one stage to celebrate 60 years of life of two of India's greatest cricketers in Gavaskar and Vishwanath.

While Tendulkar was the chief guest of the function, Amitabh did the honours by presenting Sunny and Vishy with golden bats. And indeed, as these greats stood together to a standing ovation from the distinguished audience at the Rangasharda auditorium, they made for a picture to be preserved for posterity.

The clock was pushed back to the era when Gavaskar and Vishwanath were the signatures of Indian cricket. There were glimpses of their heroics on the screen while their friends and colleagues came up with interesting anecdotes to bring forth not just their passion for the game but also their colourful persona.

The mood was set for the wonderful evening once Amitabh held fort and his rich baritone struck an instant rapport with the audience. And catching the mood of the occasion, Vishwanath took a trip down memory lane to recall several humorous and even horror-filled incidents of his illustrious career. Yet, when it came to praising Gavaskar, he underlined the qualities that made his brother in-law one of the greatest batsman of all times.

"He was an amazing player who faced fast bowling all over the world with courage, pride and determination. I admired his tremendous powers of concentration and his ability to pick the length of the ball," said Vishwanath.

On his part, Gavaskar recalled that he never wore a helmet because he wasn't comfortable wearing it and found it a bit heavy. In a lighter vein, Gavaskar said that if born again, he would like to be a fast bowler and not an opening bat. His reasoning: "In my days, they used to have a fast bowlers' union where by no fast bowler would bowl a bouncer at any of his opponent. But now things are different. I can retaliate."

The unique occasion gave Big B butterflies in his stomach. "Even as I sit between these distinguished people, I have butterflies in my stomach. I don't know what to say. But, it's good to have butterflies for any performer to perform under pressure," he explained. His views were endorsed by Tendulkar who said, "It's important to be nervous because when I am nervous I know I want to do well."

While greeting Vishwanath and Tendulkar for their wealth of accomplishments, Amitabh said he was privileged to have spent more time with Sunil. "He would call me on every birthday and I called him on his birthday. And it was Sunil who started it," the Bollywood icon said.