Zaheer paaji’s engagement surprised the team: Amit
Delhi Daredevils pacer Zaheer Khan’s fans were not the only ones taken by surprise at the news of his engagement to Chak De! India actor Sagarika Ghatge. His Indian Premier League teammate, leg spinner Amit Mishra (above), tells us that the whole team was similarly surprised. They got to know about it when 38-year-old ‘Zak’ posted a selfie (inset) with his new fiancée.
“Obviously, we knew [that they were dating], and we did know they were thinking about taking things forward. But we were surprised that Zaheer paaji was engaged. We thought he was going to pop the question once IPL was over,” says Amit.
Since that announcement, the teammates haven’t stopped pulling their captain’s leg. “Woh toh hoga hi (that was bound to happen). We keep teasing him and say, ‘Zaheer paaji, apne sagai toh chup chap kar li. Ab shaadi mein toh bulana nahi bhul jaoge na? (brother Zaheer, you got engaged so secretively. Now, hope you won’t forget to invite us for the wedding),” chuckles the spinner.
Zaheer is taking it in his stride. “He’s quite nice and laughs it off,” says Amit, 32.
That easy-going attitude shows in Zaheer’s captaincy; and the captain being a bowler is a bonus for Amit. He says, “It’s great that [Zaheer] is our captain. He’s not a very difficult man to get across, and listens to every player in the team. He is a bowler and that helps someone like me, who’s also a bowler.”