'Owner arranged 2 private jets, we flew into military base': Former IPL star's startling revelation about Taj Mahal trip
The former batter has revealed in the book that two private jets were hired by Delhi Daredevils (now the Delhi Capitals) owner's son for ferrying players to the Taj Mahal.
Since its inception in 2008, the Indian Premier League (IPL) has remained true to its 'where talent meets opportunity' watchword. But along with discovering new players, the tournament has grown enormously when it comes to advertising revenue and lucrative contracts for players. Overseas players have also played a pivotal role in the league's journey and a few have imbibed the Indian culture as well.
But for Ross Taylor, a 22-minute flight to the Taj Mahal remains among the highlights of his time in India. The former batter has revealed in the book – Ross Taylor: Black & White – that two private jets were hired by Delhi Daredevils (now the Delhi Capitals) owner's son for ferrying players to the Taj Mahal. Notably, the jets were allowed to land at a military base near Agra as there was no civil airport.
“There were 11 of us and the jet could only take nine, so Kiran (son of GM Rao, IPL franchise owner) provided two of them. The flight took just 22 minutes. There isn’t a civil airport at Agra so we flew into a military base: some highly placed person had obviously pulled a few strings,” revealed Taylor.
Taylor also shared a funny incident about his visit. “The next day the Times of India ran a photo of Leanne McGoldrick (Taylor's then manager) and me on the seat Diana, Princess of Wales, sat on in that famous shot. The caption was – Ross Taylor with wife Leanne at the Taj Mahal."
The goof up by the news publication, referring his manager as his wife, had miffed his actual wife Victoria. Talking about his wife's reaction, Taylor wrote, "The whole episode still annoys Victoria and I just can’t help winding her up. Every time we see the Taj on the news or in a brochure or whatever, I wax lyrical about how fabulous it was."