And now,Archana

Archana Vijaya is to IPL Season 4,what Mandira Bedi was to World Cup 2003.

IPL Cricket has a glamourous interpreter this season

Archana Vijaya is to IPL Season 4,what Mandira Bedi was to World Cup 2003. The noodle straps have been replaced with tube dresses,but the TV host knows exactly when to pout in front of the camera and when to deliver cricket jargon with the precision of a yorker. My experience as a model has come handy. I know how to look convincing in front of the camera, says Vijaya,as she waited anxiously to go on-air to host the Kolkata Night Riders vs Chennai Super Kings encounter at Eden Gardens on Saturday. As one of five TV hosts of IPL 4s Extra Innings on Set Max,Vijayas journey from the runway to the cricket field is described in her own words as nothing but surreal. From looking glamourous in bright fashionable dresses to equally professional in a pair of denims,the 28-year-old has infused a sense of chutzpah into the IPL match analysis on television. I have been hosting TV cricket shows for international one-day matches and test matches for four years. This is familiar territory, says the former face for Neo Cricket,who quit from the channel last year,to become a f-r-e-e-l-a-n-c-e-r and be more in control of the kind of assignments she wants to take up.

Then came the offer to host the IPL 4 matches. While this required the Kolkata-born to present a combination of glamour and cricketing knowledge,she took it up as a challenge. This is the first time I am hosting shows for domestic league matches,but years of hosting ODIs provided good grounding. IPL is harder. In a show of three hours,I am on-air for half the duration. In my previous job,that was not the case, explains Vijaya,who was a VJ for Channel V in 2005-07. In her current role,she can be stationed in the studio or at the cricket field,depending on the decision taken by the production team. She does have preferences though. I love being in the studio, she gushes,adding,There is an air-conditioner and its a more controlled environment. On the ground,it can become very hot and dusty since these are the summer months. I dont like that. Every match,meanwhile,is preceded by in-depth research.

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However,Vijaya confesses that cricket was never her ambition. After college,she received a few modeling assignments and jumped straight into them. Winning the reality beauty contest,Get Gorgeous-Season 1,was a bonus. Besides walking the ramp at Rome Fashion Week,she has also walked the runways for top designers from the fashion world,including Tarun

Tahiliani,Sabyasachi,Rohit Bal,Manish Malhotra and Narendra Kumar and has several ad campaigns to her credit. This is pretty much the story of my life unplanned and surreal. I am enjoying my stint as a cricket show host,as I get to meet legends of cricket. The response has been encouraging, she adds.

Being among the few women who have become popular as hosts of cricket shows does not concern her. It all comes down to how serious you are. In 2007,I was asked to be the glam face for Neo Cricket and since then I have been hooked to the game. Being in the company of cricketers,I have managed to learn cricket jargon on-the-job, says Vijaya,who says that it is difficult not to be a follower of cricket,given that her dad watches the game at home all day.

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