A Poet at the Tennis Court

JOH JEET A WOH SIKANDAR .
.Do Tennis ke Ustad beech main manav bandar
dil hai samandar ..kabhi unke ghar ke bahar kabhi unke ghar ke andar..dam a dam mast qalandar ..watch your thunder ...what god put together no man can put asunder ..earn through the sweat of your brow dont pillage plunder ...

The Tennis Stroke of Luck

All my life right from my schooldays at Wodehouse Road I dont recollect playing any sports ..no cricket no football no hockey our school days we flirted with comely girls that was our sports or the games we played .
There was dramatics that I participated with a few friends ..
I loved reading books but no other games .
Not even in college .
Three years back I began walking rigorously as my blood sugar was causing havoc ..it was while taking the rounds I used to watch a few walking mates playing tennis ..but I had no interest .
One day the tennis Coach smiled at me and invited me to the court we got talking we became friends Coach Surendra Pawar had taught tennis to a few Bollywood people and was once connected to Khar Gymkhana ..He casually asked m try out some tennis shots and thus began my love for tennis ..
It was not easy at all because I have a damaged right hand I cant fold my wrist and the racquet would fly out of my hand ,,my left leg was always accident prone so I could hardly move I am 65 ..
Trial and error it took me a lot of time those who had played with me became senior players I still played with the juniors and newbies I still do.
In my life I have never met a person like Mr Surendra Pawar from the day I started playing tennis he vowed not to take a penny from me he taught me free on my birthday he gave me a Head racquet costing Rs 14000 ..I found out the price on the Internet.
His boys instructors went out of their way to help me play simply because I cared for all of them..if my wife makes something special she will see that I take a tiffin for them.
But whatever I do I cannot repay what thy have done for me I thank them for my stamina that helped me in my Sufi walk Chadiyan from Delhi to Ajmer 550 km in 13 days .
My blood sugar was under control my waist was 41.5 inches now it is 37 ..
So I started a Whatsup Group as a tribute to my Coach..he is my Guru and father figure though 10 years younger than me ..His grandson Ayan who lives in Belgium loved me a lot as I spoke with him in French.. he was on holidays in Mumbai with his family.


I made a playlist of my Tennis videos , Coachs birthday instructors weddings birthdays etc ,,,on You Tube.


Even at Flickr I set up a album of my tennis memories under Coach Pawar and his boys Darshan Rohan Mangesh Vish Maneesh Michael Praful Sanket Razak and others ,
Last night sitting up at home I wrote a few poems ..


I play for 45 minutes every morning at MET Grounds ..
If anyone of you would like to play tennis reasonable rates let me know I will connect you with my Coach who is absolutely dedicated by very low profile .


dressed in white an old oak
a tennis floor wet soaked
the Rains glistening emotions
choked ..a moment born of
passionate dedication the
 coach spoke to  a Malang bespoke ..


 On a wet perspiring tennis court ..a dream like a paper boat  afloat ..to Be or not to Be..a tennis player or pretend to be just another  scapegoat..    

               
: kabhi kabhi dil ko lagti hai Chot ..dat se Dabey hot ..kehti hai Begumsahiba kam karo chodo tennis ghar par lao note..apni hasraton ka gala ghot ..mere hath ki lakeeron par dalmot..subha jakey Lana hai blood sugar report ek taraf zindagi dusri taraf maut.

Coach Surendra Pawar

Coach Surendra Pawar is a self made man 50 years age his humble beginnings at Tennis were at Khar Gymkhana as a ball picker.
He worked hard efficiently and became a instructor under  his International Tennis Coach Mr Iyer.
He is married 3 kids one of his daughter lives in Belgium with her husband and 2 sons .


His son and another daughter go to college .
Coach Surendra Pawar teaches Tennis at MET grounds Bandra Reclamation where I used to walk and 3 years back he invited me to the court to try my hand at Tennis..Here I must mention I have never played a single sports in my life ..I know it sounds boring but I loved reading books and my world was books books books .
But Coach Pawar groomed me did not charge me a single cent I told him I could afford to pay his fees but he said he would not take a penny from me .

On my birthday two years back he gifted me a Head racquet and thereby changed my life my outlook ..I have a serious injury on my hand I cannot bend my fist it is a sword injury that happened to me during Moharam while cutting my head for kama matam.

However I am able to hold the racquet earlier it used to slip of my hand but now I hold it firm .

At 65 I don't know what I will achieve through tennis but it keeps me fit I have gained in stamina I hardly have a potbelly my waist line was 41 its now  37 inches .

Coach and his instructors have worked a miracle on me ..I am indebted to them so I promote them and hope others sedentary couch potatoes will take to playing Tennis.

Because of the Rains I stopped my long walks so it is only tennis that sustains me successfully .

Coach is my Guru ..I respect him and he and his Boys including others who play better tennis than me have supported me and encouraged me .

These are few lines as tribute to their love for this crazy old Monk .

Tennis Under The Most Humble Coach ..Mr Surendra Pawar Bandra

Tennis In The Rains Under Coach Surendra Pawar

My dynamic but humble coach Mr Surendra Pawar ..has kept me fit .
Gave Me a Reason to live when I was 
Down in the pits my life was totally 
Bullshit ..he presented me on my 
Birthday a tennis kit ..
Made me a 65 year old tennis player
Every bit ...a ball I can hit ..


After almost a month I go back to play tennis under my Coach Surendra Pawar ..on my injured leg .
Over 15 days in Khamakhya and 22 days in bed was driving me crazy so I wore a kid and slipper on my injured leg walk to the courts at Bandra Reclamation.
I played for 45 minutes and am feeling refreshed and better but the swelling on my toe is taking time .
I thank my coach and his instructors .
Rohan Pawar Darshan Bendal Mangesh Dhotre and Praful Tambe and Sanket Kamble and Maneesh for their support and patience .
Pictures shot by Rohan and Sanke

The Humility of My Tennis Coach Surendra Pawar ...Untold Story

Last year since 10 Feb 2015 I began walking rigorously from my house at Bandra Reclamation Lal Mitti till the end of Bandra Reclamation beyond the furthest end .
One day I met another senior walker who suggested instead of taking a risk against speeding cars coming from the Sea LInk why dont I try walking at the MET Grounds as it was called those days .
All the years at Bandra Reclamation where I stayed I never walked I was fat lazy and blood sugar ridden..swollen feet no stamina .. and loads of health problems .
So I began taking rounds with some old friends who would join me after their tennis session..I thought tennis was an expensive sport and I was not into sports I never played football cricket or hockey in school.. I was a bookworm and a drama lover ,..
One day in April Coach Surendra Pawar who had become my friend invited me to try my hand at tennis I thought he was joking but I tried my hand along with another 83 old man..
And thus began my Tennis Yatra ,, in the mean time my loving sister Farzana Suri gave me a tennis racquet and I have a disability on my right hand but I played on,,,
At the end of the month I asked Coach about my fees ,, and he politely refused to take a cent from me ,,I felt bad I told him atleast charge me something a token amount ,, but Coach would not take money from me that was his final reply .
And all he said Firoze Bhai your blood sugar should come down I am in tears as I write this ,, I mean in the eyes of a polarized world he was a Hindu I was a Muslim...but in the eyes of each other we were blood brothers the same sensitivity ,, as humans .
On my birthday 10 December 2015 Coach gifted me a very expensive Head racquet and hugged me like his own brother ,,and his boys all of them treat me like their own family Darshan Bendal Rohan Pawar Vish Sawant Mangesh Dhotre Praful Tambe Sanket Kamble and his son my Guru bhai Sahil Pawar,
So this is my Tennis story I promote my Coach as he gave me a new lease on life ,,my waistline was 41 I am 36 now my blood sugar was between 300 and 350 now 82 ,,,along with the Coachs contribution it has also been Dr Shashank Joshi who has given me good good medical treatment .
I cannot forget my wife who maintains my diet ,...
I also am thankful to all my tennis team mates we are one big happy family 45 minutes 6 days a week that change the way we face life .
Whatever I have down for my Coach is speck compared to all that he has done for me ,, because he does not charge me I stopped taking my granddaughter to the Court ,,, its too heavy a burden on this beggar poets self consciousness ,,,and self righteousness .
And last but not the least my Coach has never forgotten the elders of Khar Gynmkhana who gave him a chance , he started off as a ball picker and has taught tennis to most of the veterans .
He speaks highly of Razdan Sab Premji and Mr Shyam Shroff..
So this was a story I have finally shared with all of you ,,