Two Lives

MONTY PANESAR
His website has been announced though the link is still not operational, but the 8220;first Sikh England cricketer8221;, at the age of 25, is ready with his autobiography. Titled Monty8217;s Turn: My Story So Far, it is presumably the first of many memoirs. Luton-born Mudhsuden Singh 8216;Monty8217; Panesar has already been part of many cricketing turnarounds with his left-arm spin. More interestingly, in the cause of cheerful multiculturalism, his winning ways have brought excitement into the stands, with enthusiastic English fans regularly turning up for Test matches sporting black patkas and fake beards. Incidentally, that story may have to be updated sooner than his publishers may have expected. Panesar excited the cricketing world last summer by speaking of his work on developing a left-hand doosra. India, who begin their Test tour this month, must hope they don8217;t find too many surprises.

RAGEH OMAAR
Omaar, a Briton of Somalian descent, attained a rockstar kind of following during the US-led invasion of Iraq in 2003. His dispatches for the BBC from the rooftop of his Baghdad hotel 8212; in the days preceding the 8220;shock and awe8221; campaign and thereafter until the invaders finally made it through desert storms and unexpected resistance to take the Iraqi capital 8212; gained iconic status. Middle-aged women in London at the time would be seen with Rageh T-shirts! His recent autobiography, Only Half of Me: Being a Muslim in Britain, talks about reconciling his ethnic heritage with life in his adopted country. In the years since the Iraq war, he has also expressed regret that he did not do more stories at that stage from the perspective of the Iraqi people. He left the BBC to do broadcasting for Al Jazeera8217;s English service.