Jax Spikers: Interviews with JaxSpikers

Face To face with the Retiring Jax Spikers
(Thomas, Madhu, Sujit and Raju)- October 7, 2007

Posted on October 8, 2007

Transcribed Interview - part 3 (Interview with Raju)

THE INTERVIEWER: Tharikida Thampuran (TT)

(For those who came in late, part 1 of the interview is available at Interview Part 1 - with Thomas

Interview Part 2 - with Madhu and Sujit )

Thampuran reached Raju's residence in St Augustine in exactly 30 mins. His wife opened the door, she had an empty saucepan in her hand..and the sweet fragrance of sauted' onions was enough to work up an appetite. It was obvious she was in the middle of preparing dinner. She hurriedly led thampuran through the laundry room into the garage where Raju was working out on a treadmill.

From a distance, when Thampuran saw raju, he was startled.Raju had some wires hanging down from his wrist and shoulder. He also had some wires running into his head..or..maybe behind his ears..He was running really fast and steady, as if running away from something scary. A quick flash of thoughts went through his mind...Looked like Raju was chained to the treadmill...and his wife with the saucepan...he stopped hs thoughts right there...He went closer and he saw that the wires to his hand and shoulder were sensors to monitor his pulse and heartbeat etc,,, the one that seemed to go behind his ear was the ipod headphone, and an audible sigh of relief escaped Thampuran's lips.

As he went closer, he could hear Raju humming a song as he was running on the treadmill..with the regular thumping of his feet on the treadmill providing a rhythmic beat to his song...Thampuran listened intently..."Murukki chuvannatho, maaran muthi chuvappichatho.." and so went the lyrics...on reaching closer, tharikida thampuran's eyes popped out of his head and he blushed when he heard the rest of the lyrics...The song Raju was singing was a parody that was penned by the genius of Raju himself, and although the poetic rhyme embedded in Raju's version of the song was next only to the original, the lyrics made Thampuran red in his face...dheem tharikida thom!!

Raju: ( With a pleasant smile.and taking the ipod headphones out of his ears)..hey there...how are you? You don mind my continuing to run do you? Its getting late too, so I hope you will keep the interview short.

TT: yes, definitely. I can see you are practicing hard for the marathon. So in your case the rumors were true, You are preparing for the marathon..where is the marathon being held?

Raju: In Orlando, in Disney. So far the practice is smooth, I am doing great...

TT: What about Volleyball?

Raju: What about it? I will be participating in the Miami National Open Volleyball tournament on Oct 13 and then concentrating completely on marathon

Here is a man sure about his plans, thampuran thought... As precise and consistent as his spikes, so seemed his thoughts and plans. Thampuran did not know what to ask him next. In the meanwhile, Raju's wife came with a glass of gatorade and some chips. Thampuran took the gatorade, took a sip and placed it on the small stand.

TT: What did you feel about your game in the last tournament?

Raju: I think I played well, although the pressure that I felt was intense, I did come through to deliver the goods, and help steer the team to the Championship.

Thampuran had really run out of questions to ask Raju now..Raju's curt answers were also an indication that he was ready to wind up the interview.

TT: Thank you very much. Good luck for your Miami games and for your marathon. Hope to See you in the next season.

Raju: Thank you too..

Thampuran proceeded to leave, then took a second look at the glass of gatorade that was placed on the side. He seemed to be trying to decide whether to take another sip or not..when raju interrupted his thoughts

Raju: Thank you too..by the way, you don have to force yourself to finish off that glass of gatorade...as far as I am concerned I have already wasted that gatorade mix and sugar that is put in that drink..(smiles with the smoothness of a pleasant host)

Thampuran quickly gulps down the rest of the drink and leaves the raju residence. He knows very well that Raju's amazing professional life as a legendary athlete and a global sports ambassador makes him a perfect role model, not only for youngsters but also for the professional and amateur athletes in our country and throughout the world.

At the end of a long day of interviews Thampuran had a lot of notes to compile and publish for the world. It was pretty hectic for him, going back and forth between Jacksonville and St. Augustine and chatting up these Volleyball stars. However, it was indeeed a unique experience that provided Thampuran a unique perspective about the Volleyball stars of Jacksonville. He came to the conclusion that none of these 4 players were really retiring. All they were seeking was a respite from the high BP.

And Thampuran aptly concluded the results of his hectic interviews with an interesting observation

"The world can retire a player, but not the game inside of him"

Sujit

Previous Interviews

Part 1: Interview with Thomas

Part 2: Interview with Sujit and Madhu

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