by Abhishek Mukherjee

Had Maninder Singh not been hell-bent on a comeback, Murali Kartik would probably not have left Delhi to play for Railways. Yes, Delhi had had its fair share of left-arm spinners since the era of Bishan Singh Bedi. And Rahul Sanghvi had arrived by the turn of the millennium.

The Zimbabwean squad to India in 2001-02 included an AC and fridge mechanic. This man, Ray Price, whose uncle had won the British Open Golf in 1994, had played six Tests without achieving much.

When he arrived, nobody seemed to have a clue about who he was. An Indian journalist suggested to another that he might be the team physiotherapist. The nickname of Physio stuck.

Zimbabwe played two Tests on that tour, at Nagpur and Delhi. Price dismissed Tendulkar thrice in three innings, Ganguly twice, and Dravid and Laxman once each. Then the team visited the Delhi Zoo.

The man in charge of the elephant enclosure recognised Price. informed that Price – not Bedi, Maninder, or Sanghvi – was the hero of his son, an aspiring left-arm spinner.

The nickname stayed, though.

Over the years, Price dismissed Lara, Chanderpaul, Gayle, Sarwan, Steve Waugh, Ponting, Martyn, Katich, Trescothick, Inzamam, Yousuf, Younis Khan, Kirsten, and Gibbs – all in 22 Tests.

Put a 100-wicket cut-off, and his economy rate of 3.99 is the fourth-best in the 21st century. In fact, in January 2010, he even achieved second spot on ICC ODI bowlers' rankings.

But all that pales into perspective when pitted against that day at the Delhi Zoo.

Ray Price was born on 12 June 1976.