Funny that this rather innocuous article about Graham Thorpe and his plans with New South Wales should remind me of this rather forceful yet beautiful line from the evergreen Pyar Kiya To Darna Kya of the legendary Mughal-e-Azam.
But then there it is. I tend to exaggerate. OK, coming to the point. I have always been a huge fan of Graham Thorpe. Trust me I am not a huge fan of too many English batsmen, well not of the 90s era anyway. But I always admired Thorpe as much for his compact skilful batting as his determination and ability to come up with a big show when the chips were down.
So I was extremely disappointed when he was omitted from the England squad for the Ashes. And I was even more disappointed when he retired in a huff because honestly after the Lords debacle I believed he stood a chance of making a comeback. I would have loved to see him there at Trent Bridge guiding England's historic chase of 130, there at the Oval on the last day in partnership with Pietersen. It seems tragic that such a great servant of England, a veteran of many a famous battles should have to bow out just before the moment of triumph which he would have been awaiting probably more than anyone else. The hurt there would have surely been immense. What I wanted was for him to go out in a blaze of glory.
But now as this article suggests he is limping out - first announcing his retirement from international cricket, then from first class cricket in England, then playing the role of a coach in NSW possibly playing a couple of games if he gets an opportunity ... and what's worse he seems to be enjoying this ... come on Thorpey ... we know you deserved better.
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