VISAKHAPATNAM: Normal. You know what's normal? Changing your clothes once a day. Or brushing your teeth twice a day.
You know what isn't normal? Walking out to bat for India for the first time after turning 30. Sleeping peacefully on the night before your big morning.
For Rajat Patidar, though, it was 'normal'. "I slept well last night," he told the media after Day One of the second Test against England. When he was asked to describe what he felt as he was walking out to bat, he termed it 'normal'. "Going into the middle, there was no pressure as I have played lots of domestic cricket," he said. "It was normal."
It sort of explains not just him but his family. They are laid back and have been that way for a long time. "If he doesn't make his debut tomorrow (Friday), then he will play for India some other day," was how Manohar, Rajat's father, put it to this daily. The family in fact is busy with the wedding of Rajat's cousin these days.
Considering this management — like the previous regime — has placed an emphasis on seniority and first-come-first-serve, Patidar was always going to be given a debut as soon as KL Rahul withdrew after the first Test. So it transpired when Zaheer Khan handed him his shiny India cap less than an hour before the start of play.
On a strip full of runs, it wouldn't have been a surprise if the debutant had to wait a full day to bat. But both Shubman Gill and Shreyas Iyer brought about their own downfalls — not for the first time — in a period sandwiched by lunch. If Virat Kohli and KL Rahul come back for the third Test, it wouldn't be a stretch to say Patidar, Shreyas and Gill would be in a three-way tussle for one spot.
On the evidence of what he did, he will at least be in that conversation. He looked calm, assured and very sure of himself. He also brought out the broom to reverse Joe Root for a boundary. Off the next ball, a stylish-looking cover drive yielded the same result.
Just when he was beginning to settle in, he played on to Rehan Ahmed. If anything, he played it with very soft hands and the ball rolled back to disturb the bail before he could kick it away.
Considering he made his domestic debut in 2015 and has had to wait for a long time, does he have any regrets? "Waiting for so long is common in Indian cricket," he said, smiling. "There are a lot of players. I was just focusing on things that were in my hands. So, at the age of 30, I came here, feeling pretty good."
Another cricketer feeling good would be Shoaib Bashir. Last week, a visa issue kept him from entering the country. On his first day of Test cricket, sending back the country's captain is the sort of statement you can make against the authorities for the delay in processing it. He called the moment 'incredible'. "It's been a very special day," he said after the day's play. "For all that I have been through in the last two to three years, it made it even more special to get Rohit Sharma out, my first wicket... feels incredible. He's a quality player, one of the best in the world and a great player of spin as well."
When former England spinner Monty Panesar spoke to this daily before the series, he singled out Bashir as an 'x-factor'. You can see why. His height and the way he puts his shoulders on the ball could be a point of difference. Usually, visiting spinners take time to adjust to the conditions (Tom Hartley from the first Test is an example).
But Bashir was driving the ball into the surface at speeds well in excess of 90kph even in his opening spell. "Always been above average height, 6ft, 4 inches does help with the spin, I guess... I could have been a bit more consistent with my lines but I'm just going to look back on this day and think getting Rohit out, I think that's all that matters really."
Two players with lots of stories who played the undercard to Yashasvi Jaiswal's main event.
