Talking Point: Commentary box beckons survivor Lal again

At a cursory glance, it may be difficult to gauge the fighter in Arun Lal. The former Indian Test opener-turned-TV pundit stands at barely five feet-plus, like his illustrious peer Sunil Gavaskar, and can pass off a well spoken senior bank man, which he once was.

For those of us who have seen him closely over 20 years though, ‘Piggy’ as Lal is nicknamed, would remain the last word in resilience and positivity, who has seen enough ups and downs in life — on and off the pitch. Much before one Sourav Ganguly arrived on the scene, Arun Lal was in spirit the ‘Dada’ (elder brother) of Bengal cricket — who tried to instill the eye-for-an-eye spirit in their dressing rooms.

An indomitable spirit, which shone through in his heartening interview to an English daily in Kolkata this week after fighting through a nerve-racking battle with jaw cancer: “My message: never give up.”

What’s more, Lal will be making a comeback with the microphone for commentary this weekend for a historic Super League final of the Cricket Association of Bengal (CAB), to be played under floodlights at the Eden and with pink balls.

This year had seen him going through hell after a rare form of cancer, which Lal initially thought was a dental problem, was detected. It was rather unusual to miss his warm greetings during a visit to the Eden Gardens in early April for the World Twenty20 final, and it was only a few days after that I learnt about his silent battle with the dreaded disease — at the Tata Memorial Hospital in Kolkata.

Like he has taken so many things on his chin in life, Lal had no qualms in revealing the trauma he had to face — beginning with a 13-hour surgery and endless sessions of radiotherapy. He knows there is always a possibility of a relapse round the corner, but is not going to let it deter him from his usual loves — the commentary box, the coaching academies, which has become part of his soul, and the social life of Kolkata — where he remains a hugely loved and sought after figure.

It’s a strange coincidence that only recently the rags-to-riches story of Bikash Chowdhury, to whom Lal and his wife played the parents when he was a young boy, went viral on social media. The Lals, who do not have children of their own, doted on a young Bikash — son of their laundryman — with wife Debjani giving him English tuition and helping out with educational expenses. Now 39, Chowdhury is the Associate Vice-president of a giant corporate house in Mumbai and has showed his gratitude by gifting a Mercedes car to the Lals.

A man with a big heart, Lal had always stood out as the players’ man — readily agreeing to become the secretary of the players’ body in 2002 when some of the top Indian cricketers were locked in a tussle with the Indian cricket board over image rights. The association failed to take off for what Lal felt was a ‘fear factor’ among the players, but he was ready to take charge again — before his illness — should the body be revived following the Lodha Committee’s recommendations on the need of a players’ body.

The fight at hand is much bigger — but we can count on Lal, as always, not to give it up!