Mahesh Verma HAIL KING TRIVIAL TRAVAILS

Mahesh has been in Oman since 1985. After having worked with Bank Muscat and Merrill Lynch, he started Trinity Investments, apparently named because of the three women in his life...his wife and two daughters. You can contact him at mahesh.verma@apexmedia.co.om

Hail King Roger VIII for achieving immortality… and though I am not the “I told you so” sort, please don’t tell me that I didn’t tell you! Our local oracle Atticus had predicted this, and in case you are a member of the doubting ilk, then do read last fortnight’s TT. Roger Federer is now officially anointed as King Roger the Eighth after having joined the ranks of the Gods of tennis, and having become the GOAT (Greatest Of All Times). But I kid you not - the goat is actually a tiger on court, having the same grace, determination, grit and killer instinct as that magnificent creature of the jungles; quite unlike the other Tiger meandering in the woods, who seems to have lost the bite after having become a cheetah!

Three days ago on the centre court in Wimbledon, The King, after having decimated an apparently injured Marin Cilic, achieved immortality in the world of tennis. He cemented his reputation as the greatest player to grace his sport by lifting a record eighth Wimbledon title and this victory meant that the King, who will turn 36 next month, surpassed “Pistol” Pete Sampras and the Victorian-era great, William Renshaw, who had each claimed seven. Someone commented that his racket played like a Stradivarius, and the American writer David Foster Wallace compared watching him to a religious experience.

He is more than arguably the greatest tennis player of all-time. He is a brand. He is a business man. He is a humanitarian. While his nearly twodecade run of “transcendence on the court is nothing short of remarkable, his work off it is also highly impressive.” In his own words, to have reached this stage he has had to work very hard. There has been “quite a transformation from a screaming, racket throwing, swearing kind of brat on the tennis court to the calm guy you know today.” He kept asking himself how he could improve and how could he become a better player,

a better person. And now, almost every time he steps on the court, he rewrites history in some shape or form. He is currently rumoured to be worth approximately US$400mn, while other estimates put him at US$450mn and some at US$320mn. Even if one takes these net worth numbers with a significant grain of salt as one should, and irrespective of what that actual number is, it’s perhaps safe to say that Mr Federer will be pretty well off when and if he retires. All hail King Roger the Eighth! All hail Atticus the local oracle from Al Hail!

While Roger’s one wife and two sets of twins, and the posse of nannies along with the entourage of masseurs and masseuses and coaches et al celebrated in the mountains of Switzerland, across the globe in the mountains of Sri Lanka, the wife-also referred to as one’s one wife, became part of the “Six Sitas” (a band of DDG GGG, which for the uninitiated refers to the drop dead gorgeous giggly gals) who followed Sita’s trail and managed to track the “vatika” or garden where she (Sita and not one’s wife) was held captive during the Ramayan era. And while King Roger and gang have gone back to their normal routine, our Six - sans their significant six - continue their meandering amidst the forts of Galle and streets of Colombo. As they say - come back now, all is forgiven!

And before I sign off, a few random thoughts: ▶Do you know that common sense is almost like deodorant? Those who need it the most never seem to use it!

▶ Do you know that the greatest pleasure in life is doing what people say you can never do?

▶ Do you know that for some people I feel like saying “Sorry, my dog ate your WhatsApp message?”

Meanwhile, a very happy and blessed Renaissance Day to everyone!

Till next fortnight... .

ROGER VIII