Money, success and fame don’t decide how you live. You decide how you live. Former India pacer Javagal Srinath is a classic example of how one should live. He is the achiever of the highest order. In an international career that spanned 12 years, Srinath played 67 Tests and 229 ODIs for India and took more than 550 wickets. Post-retirement, he has been a match referee for a large part and has officiated at some important matches over the years. He is a thinking person, very soft-spoken, and can be funny at times. But here we are talking about his lifestyle, which appears to be very minimalistic.
A post on LinkedIn has gone viral, amassing thousands of likes and hundreds of comments. It has a picture in which Srinath is in a metro coach, leaning against the wall and holding his trolley bag with one hand. He is simply attired, shirt tucked into his jeans, besides wearing a very basic pair of leather shoes.
The gentleman who shared the pic on the social media platform wrote: “Simplicity at Its Best! A man who took 315 ODI and 236 Test wickets, the only Indian fast bowler to cross the 300-wicket mark in ODIs, represented India in four World Cups — 1992, 1996, 1999 & 2003 is standing quietly in a Metro coach — true greatness never needs to make noise.”
Then we also have cricketers who drive Lamborghinis, wear Rolexes and show off their expensive holidays with not half as much achievement in the sporting arena. Surely, that’s one way of living, but it’s not the ideal one. The Srinath example will resonate more with cricket fans.
Srinath, over the years, has been a big proponent of Test cricket and believes the budding cricketers should focus on the longest format to get better at all formats. Recently at an event, Srinath told PTI: “IPL is important, but you need depth in cricket. I mean, Test cricket is a five-day format, which is why it is called the ‘mother of all cricket.’ A player who plays Test cricket can also find it easier to play T20 cricket. But for someone who only plays T20 cricket, playing Test cricket is not as easy. So, I am saying, stick to Test cricket… the longer version of the game. Alongside that, you can also play T20.”
