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by Sharm de Alwis

Still within the Pearly Gates and loitering in the ethereal landscape I came upon Sir Don Bradman.

Fancy meeting you here, Don.

There is an element of surprise in your voice.

Q: Yes, stemming from the fact that you were a bit naughty at times. Ruffled a few pretty feathers didn't you?

A: Oh, come off it. The Aussie Press, no, the World Press idolised me and even gave me a halo before I came here. As a matter of fact, I came here on the sly. St. peter was on leave and the Patron Saint of Aussie was on duty at the Gates.

Q: You thought that Syd Barnes was too maverick and gave him a short lease at the crease?

A: Syd was a maverick, alright. He would have slotted in well with the Sri Lankans today. One interim committee would have seen that he was thrown out by the Selectors and the next committee would have him taken back.

Q: You gave Keith Miller and Ray Lindwall long spells of rest after they had grabbed the initiative in the opening spell?

A: I never wanted to wear out a bowler. It's not just one match but a series over the years. Quickies burn out fast unless they are nursed in the proper manner.

Q: The general belief amongst us in Sri Lanka is that you wanted Ian Johnson and Bill Johnson to go bunny hunting.

A: That's a warped sense of justice. You play ducks and drakes all the time not knowing which is which.

Q: To elaborate?

A: Sunil Gavaskar was a vociferous objector to your getting International cricket status and now you are sucking up to him.

Q: We digressed for a moment. To get back on track, you had a spat with Lord Tennyson who was a former captain of England and the son of a one time Governor General of Australia. You were haughty?

A: In my final year in '48 he invited me to "spare a moment" with him as a prelude to a dinner date.

Q: So, what was the rub?

A: '48 was my swan song if I may put it poetically. The Lord was by then a big stick in English cricket. He had turned a blind eye to bodyline and he wanted to have weak tea with me. No, sir, I'd rather have a beer with the boys and never you mind an extra spread around the midriff. After all, I would have been going into oblivion with the now famous blob in my last outing.

Q: The Australian columnist, David McNicoll reported that "the Tennyson affair was one of the growing list of examples of needless brusqueness and lack of tact" on your part and that you were guilty of "displays of tactlessness and rudeness".

A: McNicoll was reporting on the incident from a goodly distance. Lord Tennyson was a jovial and popular fellow who was apt to go overboard in his inclinations and I was advised by an England Selector a friend of the Lord to stay clear of a possible rumbustious happenings.

Q: Your son didn't think of you as much of a father-figure. He even chose to live by another name.

A: An idol within his home and castle has feet of clay.

Q: Allan Mc Gilvray called you a miser?

A: He did say when I was grafting some runs, "A single here a single there, like a millionaire practising thrift".

Q: Had you scored 4 runs in your last outing at the Oval you would have had an average of 100 runs. But the duck you got in the second ball from Hollies became famous and an English weekly ran a banner headline 'BRADMAN OUT, 0'.

A: That's what the poet meant when he said, "damn with faint praise".

Q: Just 4 runs and you would have had an aggregate of 7,000 runs.

A: Upto then only Pollock, Headley and Sutcliffe had finished their careers with an average of 60. So, actually, there was no one to keep me company. It can be pretty cold up there on the summit.

Q: You wrapped up your career with an innings win over England.

A: The boys were magnificent. Lindwall with 6 wickets for 20 in 16.1 overs was unplayable after Miller got the early breakthrough of 2 for 5 in 8 overs. We bundled them out for 52 in the first innings. Morris was run out for 196, the only way he could have been got rid of when we essayed 389. Second time out they fared a bit better but were not good enough with 188 to stall a convincing win. Again the two pacies helped by Johnston with 4 wickets got the five wickets between themselves. And we caught everything that went above ground.

Q: How would you sum up?

A: It was good while it lasted. I carved a niche for myself in the annals of cricket. The boys were decent and did not play up any hiccups that might have been there in the dressing room. Take a good look at that boy Tendulkar. He has a lot of cricket left in him and he bats very much in the manner I did. Although I amassed runs there was a better bat in Stan McCabe who carved them on glass.

The bells were tolling and we had to tuck into the dorm and pull the cloud over us for that was our blanket.

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