Bharadwaj, Ganesh uncover Karnataka cricket treasures

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Dodda Ganesh

Over the last two months, sports fans have been fighting withdrawal symptoms. With no live action due to the coronavirus outbreak, they have been forced to settle for highlights of classics. This is what convinced two former internationals Vijay Bharadwaj and Dodda Ganesh to rewind Karnataka cricket’s golden moments.

Have you seen Rahul Dravid uncharacteristically animated in a nail-biting Ranji Trophy semifinal against Hyderabad? Did you know about Navjot Singh Sidhu’s hilarious on-field confrontation with Dodda Ganesh? What was the bizarre incident on Barrington Rowland’s debut? For Karnataka cricket tragics, the Twitter handles of these two state stalwarts are the platforms for those rare photographs, unseen videos and unheard of anecdotes. It’s pure gold.

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“The intention was to preserve the rich cricketing history of Karnataka cricket,” says Bharadwaj, who slammed 5,553 runs in 96 first-class games.

“There are many unsung heroes who have worked hard to make our state a powerhouse. It’s sad to know many youngsters don’t know who G R Viswanath is. It’s similar to not knowing Dr Rajkumar and his works. I don’t blame them because there aren’t enough books on Karnataka cricket’s legacy,” rues Bharadwaj, who has lined up more content on Karnataka cricket for his YoutTube channel and podcast named Dressing Room Show.

Ganesh, owner of 365 wickets from 104 first-class games, says it’s the best time to talk about past glory. “There is no IPL to keep youngsters busy now. In our days, we couldn’t interact with fans directly because there was no social media,” he says.

Cricket romantics can expect more. “I have interesting tales of bowling with different balls (SG, Dukes & Kookaburra), the kind of shoes pacers used and my memories of playing abroad. I will be using my good collection of newspaper clippings, videos and photographs to narrate these tales,” notes Ganesh.