'Now Am Becoming A 'Socialite' After My Powerful Innings'

India's Ace Cricketer VVS Laxman opens up about life post-retirement and his new role as a cricketing mentor. After 16 years of being in action on the field, VVS Laxman, the true gentleman of cricket, is now enjoying life like he never did. Of course, he admits that the “greed to play for India will always be there”, but also maintains that there will come a time when every player has to bid goodbye. In an hour-long conversation, Laxman opens up about his pillar of strength — his wife Sailaja, who has almost been a single parent to their two young kids till date, about penning down his life into a book and the week after his retirement that was surrounded with controversies. Excerpts:

You are back in the Hyderabad IPL team, but this time as a mentor... 
Yes. Mentoring is a new experience because it’s only recently that I retired from all forms of cricket. So, this is a great way of giving back to the game. Our team has some experienced players and also some young players who are just finding their feet in cricket. IPL is a big platform, where everyone would like to prove himself and that’s where mentoring plays a huge part. I can share my experiences, tell them how to handle various situations and I’m sure Srikkanth (Kris) and I can help contribute in the development of these young players. 

Has mentoring changed the way you look at cricket? 
Not at all. I was a senior player and I contributed like a mentor even then. Luckily for me, the juniors have always shown me respect and have been open to my suggestions, leading to good results. But it’s a known fact that young players are an aggressive lot... 

Yes, there is definitely a huge change in the approach of the younger lot. And it’s not just in cricketers, but the whole generation itself. I’d however, look at it in a positive way. The confidence levels of young Indians is much more than what it was when I was their age. They have so much exposure. Most importantly, they are not overawed by the big stage. I feel that the aggression factor is a reciprocal thing. You can’t dictate terms to them and be rigid in your thinking. There should always be an open channel of discussion. 

Didn’t you still have some cricket left in you when you announced your retirement? 
It was definitely a sudden decision. I was preparing myself for the whole season ahead. But a stage came where there was some kind of a feeling, a voice from within, saying that it is best for Indian cricket. The New Zealand Test series was going to start and the more I thought about it, the more I felt like it was the right time for me to move on and let a youngster come into the team, play 10 Test matches and establish himself. It must have been an extremely tough decision... 

Yes, it was a tough decision and I was in a dilemma, but I have always put my team ahead of my personal aspirations. Of course, I took a lot of pride playing for the country. The greed of continuing to play for the country will always be there, but it was what I felt from within that was more important. I do know people floated a lot of stories about my retirement decision, because yes, it was a surprising move. I was in fact, I was working hard when I decided this. It was just a matter of when is the right time to move on. I followed what my heart told me. My decision was right for the team. 

So, all those stories surrounding your retirement decision weren’t true? 

Not at all. It’s actually unfortunate, because I was never involved in any kind of controversy during my career. But after retirement, people were suddenly talking about my strained relationship with Dhoni. It became a huge issue for no reason! A lot was said in that one week after my retirement, but the most unfortunate story was the MS Dhoni one, which claimed that I had invited the entire team for dinner to my place, and only Dhoni was left out. I was really upset about it. It was just one of those casual dinners and only four guys had come over to my place. They come to my house whenever they are in Hyderabad, just like I visit Sachin’s house every time I’m in Mumbai. Dhoni and I have immense respect for each other and share a great rapport. Both of us actually laughed about that matter when we met later. 

Did you discuss your decision to quit with anybody? 
Yes. My family, my uncle and coaches, just one week before the announcement. 

You didn’t discuss it with the team? 
No. Not the team, because till August 17 (Laxman announced his retirement on August 18), I wasn’t sure whether I am actually going to retire. I called each one of them on the day I was going to make the announcement, except Sourav (Ganguly) and Dhoni because both their numbers had changed and I didn’t have their new numbers. It was a very emotional moment for me. I was actually in tears talking to some of them. I am not the kind to cry easily, so you can imagine how tough the decision to quit would have been. I was ending a chapter in my life which had started when I was probably 10 years old. I always dreamed as a child to play for the country and I have lived my dream. And now, I knew that the chapter was ending. 

There were lots of people who told me not to quit. Sachin (Tendulkar) spoke to me for almost 45 minutes on the day of my retirement. He felt that I still had more cricket left in me, and I know I did. My parents too objected to my retirement, but when I told them the reason, everyone, including my wife Sailaja, supported me. She supports me in whatever I do. She tells me only one thing — ‘If it makes you happy, go ahead and do it’. 

So, are you happy and relaxed now,post retirement? 
I have always been relaxed. I took cricket seriously, but I never stressed myself out. But yes, now I do get more time to spend at home with family. Apart from that, I have a lot of other things going on too. The mentoring gig will keep me busy for another two months. I also travel a lot for corporate talks — the most common topic being ‘How to bounce back from adversities’. I apply my cricketing experience to the corporate life as I believe everyone goes through the same situations in life. I also took up commentary, but I am not sure if I want to continue doing that. Then, I have a dream to open a school with the infrastructure of a sports academy, because I am passionate about education that also clubs extra-curricular activities to help a child have an all-round development. 

With no more practise sessions and training, do you spend more time with your kids? 
My wife complains that I have gotten even more busy post retirement (laughs). When I was playing cricket, at least there was a systematic routine. I used to train from 6.30 am to 9 am, then come back home. In the evening again, I would train for two-and-a-half hours and be back home. Now that I’m retired, people expect me to be everywhere (laughs). That’s one reason I didn’t take up commentary assignments because it would require me to travel too much. I have two young kids, a wife, and now I think it is important to spend as much time as I can at home. I love dropping my kids to their school bus and then picking them up after school. Surprisingly, my son Sarvajit has become more interested in cricket after my retirement. He is just six and my daughter Achinta, is four. Both the kids are very energetic. It’s good news for me, but tough for my wife! (laughs). 

She is the one who has always handled them. Even when I was playing, she took care of everything — house, kids — and never complained. I am actually very lucky, touch wood. I got a wife that I actually dreamed of. She has always ensured I focus on the game because she knew cricket is important to me. She takes a lot of load off my back and handles things all by herself. It’s tough being a cricketer’s wife because a player lives out of a suitcase. But she has adjusted brilliantly. 

Do you have time for hobbies now? 
I read a lot, especially autobiographies. In fact, I’ve actually started writing my own autobiography. You see, it’s been a long career, and there are so many experiences that I want to pen down. I used to write diaries… I did that for the first 10 years of my career, but then it sort of stopped. I have so much in my memory. 

Will your autobiography be only about cricket? 
It’s about my life till now, right from the importance of a good family. I have been lucky to have an amazing family, my uncle, friends, coaches, my wife — they are my support system. I also wrote about what my parents went through when I took up cricket instead of becoming a doctor, how they had to handle their peer pressures when they were told that cricket is a gamble, etc. 

Link-ups are definitely not going to be a part of the book because you have none. How have you manage to stay away from them, while every other cricketer is being associated with some actress or the other? 
How did I manage? I never got involved. Simple (laughs). I never tried to consciously stay away from controversies. I was just being my natural self and I guess that shows. There were no linkup stories because there were none (laughs). Everyone has got a different personality. This is how I was right from my younger days. I have had female fans, but all of them just loved my game (laughs).