To him, work is a sport

It was a tough time to fall in love with the flat fronted willow-wood blade but Partab Ramchand always had one mantra in his mind: follow your dreams.
To him, work is a sport

CHENNAI: It was a tough time to fall in love with the flat fronted willow-wood blade but Partab Ramchand always had one mantra in his mind: follow your dreams. Heir to a textile business lordship, Partab fought the odds to earn what he has become today. The veteran sports journalist speaks to CE about his view on today’s sports journalism and story behind his big leap of faith.

“I always wanted to do something related to sports and that's why right after my matriculation, I joined The Indian Express in 1968. I was just 19,” recalls Partab when asked about his beginning.
Being a Sindhi boy, Partab had to stay firm against the tides of objection and he recollects the term he was branded with. “I was called a rebel (smiles) because in our community, inheriting one’s father’s business is considered almost sacred. This added up to that immense objection I faced.”
His father finally set down the family business and retired after coming to terms with reality. “My father waited for quite some time thinking that I would come back and take over the business one day. He soon realised that it will never happen and finally became supportive,” he explains.

He started by assisting NS Ramaswamy and covered his first test match in 1969 between India and Australia. His first international assignment was 1996 Worldcup in Sri Lanka and his last one before retirement was the inaugural test series in Bangladesh in 2000. After 50 years as a sports journalist, he is also a genuine critic of the fraternity.
"It’s disappointing to see the low values in sports journalism today...but it’s not surprising. We have gone down in life as a community, in sports as a game and then in covering sports as journalists,” opines Partab.  
Speaking about the current situation of cricket in the country, he believes that cricket, as a gentleman’s sport has lost its charm. “We have huge talent in cricket but the basic principle of cricket as a game has been tarnished by sledging and other similar forms of agitations,” states the journalist. “In my talk at the Press Institute of India, I will focus on the changing trends in journalism. Today’s journalists are so lucky. They can file the story from anywhere anytime. During our times, we had to go back, type and then print it. The line of machine used nowadays is fast but the kids surely missed the fun.”

While he likes to hope for a Utopian concept where sports and politics are unmixable, he knows this is impossible. “The more we hope for it, the less applicable it gets. It also affects the spirit of the game but you can’t help it,” he rues.

Partab also hopes that ICC will market cricket globally so that more countries play cricket. “T20 was a marketing tactic and it became effective to an extent. One of the reasons why other countries do not play cricket is because it is too long,” he says.

One of Partab’s childhood heroes was Muhammad Ali and he believes that being able to meet him and spending time with him in 1980 was one of his biggest life moments. “I made sure I was with him from the airport,” laughs Partab.

Partab Ramchand is talking at Press Institute of India on August 22, 5 pm.
For details, call +91 9042231343

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