Eden Gardens, Kolkata

Ethereal and elusive the enduring charm of Eden Gardens has lent an aura of its own on cricketers past and present, young and old.

The Eden Gardens is home to Calcutta Cricket Club since 1864. Legend has it that the parkland originally belonged to Rani Rashmoni from whom it passed on to the hands of the Maharaja of Cooch Behar. Another version tells us that it was an extension of the neighbourhood commons known as the 'maidan'.

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Whatever be the myth, we can safely surmise that the estate was in the possession of the Governor General, Lord Auckland; and that two of the family members - the Eden sisters - nursed and nurtured the huge area into a beautiful parkland.

In time, the garden was gifted to the citizens of Kolkata for "recreation and enjoyment." And, most appropriately, the name "Eden" stuck to provide the cricket lovers with the pleasures of the lost world. Today, of course, only a truncated version remains.

The huge Eden Gardens campus must be among the biggest in the world of cricket. It envelops apart from the cricket ground, an indoor cricket stadium, two indoor sports complexes and the All India Radio building. The area is ample enough to include a park, a pond and a pagoda.

Eden Gardens has an exclusiveness of its own. Ethereal and elusive the enduring charm of Eden Gardens has lent an aura of its own on cricketers past and present, young and old, competitive and friendly. Endearing and enchanting, the emerald green carpet and the earnest crowd have held tough men in flannels spellbound.