03 January,2011 08:52 AM IST | | Ayaz Memon
Pradeep Vijayakar's first instructions after handing the ball to me in my maiden match for the Sports Journalists Association of Bombay in 1983 were to attack the champion opposing batsman's leg stump. I don't think I quite managed to control my dibbly-dobbly medium pacer, was struck for a few boundaries, and soon enough Pradeep took it on himself to get the prized wicket.u00a0 "How did you find out about the batsman?'' I asked skipper after match. "You guys come to play without any homework or planning,'' he said. "I asked around in his team and everybody told me the same thing.'' It gave me an interesting insight into his personality.
In his career as a professional journalist, Pradeep was to bring the same curiosity and hard-nosed diligence. He made it his job to seek vital information to get to the core of a story before writing it. This could sometimes result in quirky premises and a few stories never saw expression in print. But that never deterred him from being a perennial 'find-outer'.
He had an abiding passion for cricket and always relished a game where he could showcase his all-round skills which were distinctly above club level. He was on first-name basis with all the top-notchers across the country, and a familiar figure at cricket venues either reporting or doing radio commentary on a match. But he was also deeply interested in all other sports, followed each discipline with rigour to be well-informed of both nostalgia and new trends. His friends and well-wishers were drawn from every sporting discipline one can think of.
Above all else, Pradeep was devoted to covering and nurturing sport in the 'maidans'; at the junior and amateur levels which, alas, have been bumped out of media space in recent years by international fixtures which are deemed more newsworthy.
As a department colleague during my stint with the Times of India, where he spent almost his entire journalistic career, Pradeep would often talk of his joys at reporting little-known matches, spotting and encouraging young talent. "This is the stage at which sport is at its cleanest and most enjoyable,'' he would say. Pradeep was a terrific raconteur, a prankster, fond of ghazals andu00a0 old songs which he would croon with the seriousness of a professional playback singer. He was also fond of collecting memorabilia, including for some reason which I was never able to fathom, match-boxes from all over the world.
Approaching retirement, he was looking forward to spending more time with his family and on the maidans of Mumbai soaking in the delights of sport unfettered. A fruitful second innings beckoned. Alas, the umpire above in his wisdom decided to declare him out. RIP
