A tabla player who loved ghazals,thumris and qawwalis

Old Hindi songs always brought a smile to Pataudis face and music developed as an indulgent interest alongside his professional cricket,recall his former team mates

Strains of Hindustani classical music in its various forms ghazals,thumris and qawwalis from his birthplace Bhopal were never too far from his life,even as Mansur Ali Khan Pataudi forged a brilliant career in cricket.

Old Hindi songs always brought a smile to Pataudis face and music developed as an indulgent interest alongside his professional cricket,recall his former team mates. He developed an interest in Indian music when a few of us regularly were guests at the home of greats like Talat Mahmood,Lata Mangeshkar,Manna Dey and Kishore Kumar, remembers Farokh Engineer. Listening to these greats sing and play musical instruments was something he always looked forward to, he added.

Pataudis other team mate Salim Durrani remembers the many timeless evenings spent enjoying music. He was a great fan of ghazals and I accompanied him to such evenings once the matches got over. I prided myself in being a connoisseur on ghazals and shayaris,so wed always end up listening to music together in those enjoyable sessions, he recalls.

Former Indian Test opener Kenia Jayantilal also recalls Pataudis unique habit for carrying musical instruments during tours. Beyond cricket,he was very fond of Indian instruments both playing them and listening to them. He played the tabla and sitar very well,and sometimes even traveled with them, he says. Amitabh Bachhan too tweeted on the same: Fond memories of the past with Tiger Pataudi .. his wedding,playing cricket with him,his tabla playing prowess,social evenings.

Vijay Naidu,another team mate at Bombay Gymkhana,post-retirement says his Bhopali roots lent him the cultural bent of mind. He spoke Urdu and Hindi,very pure since Bhopal was known for its refined tongue. Ghazals and qawwalis were well-appreciated by him,and Ive heard a lot about how how well he played the sitar, he says. Sport wasnt just cricket,as Naidu adds,He was a very keen billiards,snooker player and would often drag me to a pool table and wed play after a match. If he lost in the first round,hed insist on playing on till he won. The way he fielded was something to wait and watch how hed pick the ball and acrobatically turn. Only two other men had that kind of a majestic walk Col CK Nayudu and Frank Worrell.