Cutting edge, off the field too

THE DAY just begins for many stars spotted in the Chepauk cricket field after close of play each day. After the mandatory meetings on strategies and post- mortems, it is time to sell stuff.

Soft-drinks, oil, jam, motorcycles, dot coms, biscuits, shaving razors and cream, refrigerators...the list is quite long. Then of course are the mandatory appearances at places like Mayajaal, another of those marketing strategies for the fun destination.

Of course selling is no easy job. It could mean hours in front of a camera in strange sets.

``Well, it has been fun working with them. I have been shaving with Gillette and have done ads for Kelvinator refrigerator. Kelvinator are our team sponsors,'' explains Glen McGrath, who insists that he is different from the man we see (and hate) on TV. ``That is different. I am a regular cool guy outside,'' he adds.

At the moment, McGrath misses home where his 14-month old is just beginning to take the first steps. ``It is kind of hard to be away and for such long duration. My wife called me to say this. Well, that's all part of being a cricketer,'' he says.

Do people actually call him Glen. That actually reminds many of the Glen family of wines. His reply: ``They do. well, in school my friends called me pigeon because I had long legs. That kind of stuck ever since.''

McGrath was spotted at the Gillette India Mach 3 national razor promotion drive. The aussie speedster had already made guest appearances at Delhi, Mumbai and Calcutta before stepping into the now-too-familiar role here. There was an interactive session with McGrath for winners of a `razor contest;' many got to bowl at McGrath with a tennis ball just outside the ballroom even as nervous Taj executives watched with bated breath - the chandelier was hardly 8 feet high; there was glass and fragile decorative material around the place. Anyway, the 10-minute bowling session ended uneventfully as Glen ensured that everyone was left smiling at the end of the day.

By R. K. Radhakrishnan

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