Before we plunge into sporting fervour, Imma plunge ye wee folks into some intellectual fervour, by asking you to spot the similarity between the following images.
-10 if you say they are examples of nature mingling with urbanity.
-50 if you say something like, ‘there’s no similarity, this is a trick question.’
+150 if you say, they are both Cricket Clubs.
Both have selective membership.
hehe.
Disclaimer: This blogger is not responsible for the bowling over of electronic devices.
hehehehehe….
So, when I rushed headlong into Melbourne, I was laden with a lot of travel recommendations. While packing for the trip, people around me kept popping up to say things like, “You must see a kangaroo and a koala, preferably sipping coffee together.” or “You must try Vegemite.” or “You must get your brain cell(singular) eligible for Monash University.”
hehe.
Amidst this din, my father found himself a quiet moment and simply said, “Melbourne has a cricket ground.”
While his words may not seem like a declaration of passion, his eyes shone like a Christmas Tree, so, what with me being Daddy’s princess and all, I booked a tour of the Melbourne Cricket Ground, and set off for the same on a rather pleasant Tuesday morning, armed with my trusty Mickey Mouse bag and a heart ablaze with the Indian cricket craze.
And that is a wrap,
Until Next Time,
Stump ’em!
hehe.
Bowled ye wee ones over, didn’t I?
All right, so, when I got off the tram to visit the Melbourne Cricket Ground, the first thing that I saw in front of me was the Rod Laver Arena. It was a big surprise and I had to, at least, visit the compound because I am a huge fan of all things tennis(*cough, cough* Roger Federer) and the Arena holds a very special place in my heart, because it is the place where Roger Federer has won six titles and I couldn’t deny myself the honour of walking those hallowed grounds.
hehe. I say that like I was the pivotal force behind those titles, but honestly, I was really awed at the electric sporting energy that tinged the air at the Arena. It was rather early when I visited the place and the compound was mostly empty, so the magnitude of that energy was really daunting. Also, the glass walls of the Arena look really dazzling, like some sort of crystal orb, and I love how it stands out against the blue sky.
Now, whenever I visit a place remotely associated with tennis, I always imagine walking into a court teeming with the big shots of the sport(*cough, cough* Roger Federer), so seeing an empty court was rather shocking to me, hehe, but I imagined Federer playing practise shots before walking up to me and….
I always start squealing and lose my track of thought when I reach that moment in imagination.
hehe.
Here’s a glimpse of the Margaret Court Arena.
Serena was not around either, but I watched her smash some epic forehands, all in my head.
hehe.
Right, without further ado, Imma step out of my tennis fantasies and head straight into the Melbourne Cricket Ground or the MCG or simply….The ‘G.
The MCG has a very suburbia-coded entrance and the stadium looks like a leviathan emerging where the train tracks end.
The MCG is one of Melbourne’s most iconic structures, especially with its huge headlights and slanting spires. I had first seen the stadium while strolling by the Yarra river and I got so excited to see it up close.
There is a direct bridge which connects the MCG tram stop to the stadium, so getting there is very convenient. While the stadium’s surroundings have a very suburban vibe, the moment one enters its gate, one feels like having stepped into an old-money rich pavilion, with a history of nurturing the gentleman’s sport, and the posh aura is really fancy.
On entering the MCG, there’s a line of sculptures commemorating various cricketers from Victoria. The first picture shows William H. Ponsford and the second picture shows Dennis Lillee.
William Ponsford was the first cricketer to score 400 runs or more in Test Cricket. He was nicknamed, “Ponny”, which I think is adorable.
As for Dennis Lillee, I know that he had rejected Sachin Tendulkar, when the latter asked him to be a bowling coach because Lillee felt Sachin was more suited to the bat. I mean, that is literally the epitome of unknown doors to success opening when some doors close, hehe.
My dad once told me that Dennis Lillee was a hostile fast bowler.
I wonder where the jolly fast bowlers were at….
hehe.
Here we have the most photographed statue in Melbourne. It is a sculpture of Shane Warne, the King of Spin, and one of Melbourne’s favourite people. I was really happy to see his sculpture, mainly because I have actually watched him play.
The sculpture stands so beautifully against the winter sun, and it gives the statue a sort of an aura which is really heartwarming.
The Melbourne Cricket Ground was home to the 1956 Summer Olympics, held in Melbourne. The second picture shows Betty Cuthbert, Australia’s Golden Girl, who had won three gold medals at the 1956 games.
This was the last of the sculptures, outside the Melbourne Cricket Ground. Now, when I think of cricket and Australia, the only thing that occupies my mind is Don Bradman because my cricketing knowledge is completely popularity based, hehe. I had expected the MCG to be a shrine to him, but I was so surprised when I didn’t spot his statue in the sculpture walk that I made it my mission to find at least one statue dedicated to him.
The rest of my tour had me peering through stands to look for Don Bradman, in the hopes of finding him sitting there in spirit, hehe, and it was quite a hunt.
So, without further ado, Imma show you all the things that I found in lieu of Don Bradman, while touring the MCG.
hehehehe….
To say that I received Princess Treatment at the MCG, would be an understatement. The moment I went up to the gate, I was immediately approached by two guides from the Melbourne Cricket Club, who literally made me skip the small queue and escorted me to the ticket counter where another guide gave me a wrist band and a fourth guide made sure I found my way to the tour group, where a fifth guide made sure I felt all princessy in a sports pavilion.
Now, I was so amused by the amount of warmth that I received here. It was probably because I was by far the youngest person around, because all the others in my tour group were adults(like actual adults wearing beige tones and steel watches) and my Mickey Mouse bag probably had an effect of its own, hehe.
My tour group was three quarters Indian and one quarter British, and the other groups were also 90% Indian and 10% British, so if the MCG established one thing, it was the demography of cricket craze. Most of the people were my dad’s age and honestly, it was so heartening to see their dedication to their love of the sport.
Also, the guides at the MCG are all lovely old people who are members of the Melbourne Cricket Club and they are very distinguished and adorable.
All in all, I had signed up for a tour with the Cricket Knowledge Army, armed with a quest to find Don Bradman while the others spoke of fancy things like run rates and test averages.
hehe.
Also, I absolutely loved the wrist band. I received it because I had an additional booking for the Melbourne Sports Museum, which I will talk about in the next blog, but it did wonders in keeping my hand warm, as the day got rather chilly during the tour. I also loved that it was a keepsake. I literally tap danced in joy when I was told that I could keep the wrist band.
Like a toddler being handed a doll.
hehe.
The first stop on the MCG tour was this painting of Australia’s first international cricket match, played against England in 1877. The painting shows the Melbourne Cricket Ground, so that is how the dashing stadium looked back then. It was so interesting to see how people had gathered to watch the match, especially the people who watched on horseback and it really made me wonder about how the audience watching sports has evolved over time. The audience back then was definitely more at ease than the hustle-borne audience of modern times.
Back in the 1800s, all that the audience had was love for their home team and passion for the sport and the highlight of watching the game was perhaps catching a sixer. Fast forward two centuries, the driving force for the audience hasn’t changed much, but there are now added stressors of getting the best seat, getting the best snack, getting the best selfie point and the list goes on.
I mean, I’m pretty sure that this match in 1877 had no worries about replicating a Coldplay Cam moment.
If you know, you know.
hehe….
Finally, the ‘G.
When I stepped onto the grass of the MCG, I had the same feeling that Russell Crowe had when he entered the Colosseum to shoot for his Gladiator fight sequence.
hehe.
The ground at the MCG has two settings through the year. The months from October to March, see the ground decked in cricketing splendour while April to September is the Aussie Rules Footy season.
Here, we have the ground being warmed by those pink radiators, in time for a footy match. I was so glad to see pink upon the ground, hehe….
Aussie Rules Footy is the Australian version of Rugby with the rules invented by a cricketer named Thomas Wentworth Willis.
I love how the sport is called by different names in different countries and each country believes that theirs is the ultimate nomenclature. The game is called Rugby in England, Football in America, Aussie Rules Footy in Australia and Papaya Jostling in my mind, because that is exactly what the ball looks like and exactly what the sport involves.
hehe….
I have heard that a footy game is absolutely wild and I would love to watch it, the next time I’m here. I did see people heading to the ‘G for a footy match, one of the evenings, and the sporting fervour and team pride was truly phenomenal.
Here is a picture of Ms Yours Truly, at her job as a sports reporter. Her versatility amazes me.
hehe.
I was so happy to be matching with the ground that day!
This is a picture which made me stop in my tracks in shock.
The Indian Premier League(IPL) is an annual event in India that transforms its people from human beings to moths, drawn to the telly. Every run scored is a personal phenomenon, every catch taken marks a cardiological shift and the only thing that draws more attention than the matches is the players’ auction.
hehe.
Now, when I visited Melbourne, India was engulfed in IPL craze, so to see an IPL match playing on a screen at the MCG felt like I’d never left home in the first place.
The others in my tour group actually stood there to watch the over and it really made me giggle because I was, surrounded by people debating on the batting line-up and some people even glanced at me for an opinion and I was just like, send the cutest guy out first, hehe.
People watch cricket to feel the adrenaline rush, I watch it to look for cute guys.
hehe….
This was by far the poshest thing on the tour. Here we have a Blazer Bar, which is a bar displaying the Aussie team’s iconic blazers over the years. I really loved the concept and it was a very elegant place. The second picture is a place called the Keepers’ Cafe, dedicated to all the famous wicket keepers who have graced the game.
These places only provide access to members of the Melbourne Cricket Club so I could not explore them fully. I really wanted to see the Keepers’ Cafe because wicket keepers are my favourite players in a game of cricket. I think they have such an important job and they are the silent yet formidable forces in every team.
My favourite cricketer, M.S Dhoni, is a wicket keeper too, so I was really happy to see the keepers get recognition:)
When I first read this board, the words “Visitors” along with “Test Centuries” and “Five Wicket Performances” led me to believe that they’d be making us tourists play a cricket match and have our names etched in wood. I got really confident about my bowling skills (I’m a menace with the bat) for a moment, before I read the names upon the board and realised that these were the names of players of teams who had visited Australia for competitive cricket.
hehe.
There were a lot of Indian players on the board and once again, I found myself in the middle of spirited conversation comparing players’ test averages. I really wonder how people know about these players’ school test marks to compare their averages. I barely know my own test scores.
Very intellectual….
hehe.
The board has Kapil Dev’s name on it. He was the Indian captain who led the team to victory in the 1973 World Cup and he is one my dad’s favourite people so I took twelve pictures of this board and sent it to him:)
“Welcome to Sporty-Colada, by Ms Yours Truly. The Mixed Games have commenced and the first match was a very spirited performance, yes, the bat-people scarcely saw the ball coming, because they were too busy negotiating the prices of Bat mobiles and the bowlers managed to knock down the skittles in the opposite bowling lanes in a thrilling showdown, between reporter and audience, where a motivated audience member stole the reporter’s mic and broke the 100m chase record, while the reporter tripped on thin air and-….’
It was then that the next person in line gestured me to move so he could get a picture in the post-match area.
Hehe.
I love how the tour let us explore all these player-only areas. It really felt like living the bustle of the game and it was my favourite part of the tour.
Here’s a picture of a changing room, decked for footy.
I had only seen such an arrangement on TV, so it was really thrilling to see it all in front of me.
Here’s a view of the entire stadium from one of the higher stands. It was so nice to see the ground get primped for a night of footy.
There is so much effort that goes into maintaining the stadium lawn and I could literally see it all in action while taking in the view. I think the spirit of sports extends to the people who help in getting the ground ready for play and they are so vital to all the glory associated with sport.
An interesting thing that I learned was that in the footy season, the cricket pitch is kept in a nursery. I didn’t think that the pitch is something that one could just roll up and store in a nursery but it was really fascinating to learn that.
By the way, I still hadn’t found Don Bradman.
Three escalators and countless corridors later, here we have, the man, the myth, the legend, Sir Donald Bradman, first of his name, the object of my MCG visit, the destroyer of bowling careers, the bane of Body line and a certified cute guy, in all his glory.
hehe.
This is the point where I felt 100% contented with my trip to the MCG and I marked the moment by taking twenty three pictures of the statue in different angles and light settings.
I literally stood frozen here, while my tour group broke into another debate on test averages, but the funniest thing here was our guide’s reaction.
She said, ‘Oh, yeah, he’s a great man, but he’s from New South Wales.’
I’m from Berryland, what are we to do about it?
hehe.
Here’s a lovely picture of Sir Don Bradman and Sachin Tendulkar, taken on Bradman’s 90th birthday, celebrated in Adelaide. The picture exudes batting supremacy and it was really heartwarming to see it.
So, after all my perseverance, I found two commemorations of Don Bradman.
Guess who did a happy dance?
hehe.
Here is a bit of Olympic and Commonwealth Games trivia, in one of the corridors at the MCG. I love how the place has so much sporting energy, with it being the hub of cricket, Papaya Jostling(hehe), the Olympics and the Commonwealth Games, all packed into one.
The MCG tour had a brief visit to the media centre, where the commentators sit and talk about the match. It was interesting to see all the set-up and there’s actually a really good view of the ground from the windows here.
Coming out of the Media Centre, we proceeded to put a bank inside a car inside a plane inside a boat.
hehehehe….
Drumroll!!!!!
A pink Prada suit.
Worn by Robbie Williams during his performance at one of the footy games.
The MCG has a whole corridor dedicated to Robbie Williams, because he supports a Victorian footy team and that is the most dedicated tribute to a fan that I have ever seen. I was so surprised to hear Robbie Williams’ songs while walking through the halls but I loved the tribute to him.
I also love the suit.
Here is some graffiti, showcasing cricket and footy. It was a nice addition to the otherwise sober decor of the MCG halls.
Finally, here’s my souvenir haul from the MCG. I was so lucky to get the stadium replica because it was the only piece left.
I also love my batting kangaroo. It looks so determined and adorable:)
The magnet and the key-ring were for my dad. The MCG has a really nice souvenir shop with a lot of sporty merch and a very electric vibe.
All in all, I had the best experience at the MCG and by the time I was finished with the tour, I was a full cricket myself.
hehe.
And that is a wrap,
Until Next Time,
Stump ’em!