‘Special K’ as he was nick named by his friends at cricket, was barely 10 when he took the wicket of New Zealand professional and this was celebrated as the ‘Champagne moment’ in 2004 for the Rossie Priory Cricket team!! This was just the beginning…

The many matches that he played and many teams that he captained for Rossie Priory, Forfarshire Cricket club and the High School of Dundee, the camaraderie that he shared with his teammates, the weird antics of Goose, the fun that they had on and off the fields, the many trips across Scotland, England and the European Championships at Copenhagen, so many stories and so many accolades made each trip and each match ever so special.

Travelling with the team and ferried by the most involved, encouraging and doting dad who went on to relive his childhood through his son’s cricket, mentoring and coaching the lads, umpiring and scoring the games enjoyed his evening and weekend job (cricket) more than the paying one.

Although I cannot take any credit for any of Kevin’s cricket or his cricketing abilities except perhaps washing his whites and packing his lunch, I have to confess that I have but relentlessly fought, at times shamelessly bribed the club manager and done everything in my limited ability to hold on to his ‘running’ trophies that proudly adorned our living room for years, laurels won by him including some for Chess and Chemistry, so many year after year that I seem to have lost count of them.

Coming from a country where cricket is not just the most popular sport, but also a huge passion, a religion and a way of life; cricket had to be in Kevin’s blood and he picked the game early on. Where stalwarts like Gavaskar and Tendulkar were encouraged to play cricket by their parents, here I was an old fashioned middle class mom who encouraged him to devote all his time to his academics when he started university, something many Indian parents may relate to, perhaps!

And after four years, on completing college, his love for the sport takes him back to the field and this time he plays for the company he is interning at in Oxfordshire.  Some practice, sore limbs, and finally a feeling of accomplishment with a respectable 80 in a county cricket match.

Sitting proudly at the London’s famous Royal Albert hall for the Imperial College graduation ceremony as Kevin graduates with an MEng in Aeronautical engineering was by far the most satisfying experience and just made everything worth its while.

To Kevin, God be with you and bless you with much success, many more matches, sixes and centuries in cricket and life.

Photo Courtesy : Thomas Udhayasingh

Links to Rossie Priory and Forfarshire cricket clubs: http://rossiepriory.play-cricket.com http://www.forfarshire.co.uk/