When Harry Potter queued for Tendulkar's autograph

[King]

It was a wizard way to spend one's 18th birthday - and the four days leading up to it.Watching England take on India (and nearly win) at Lord's cricket ground in London.For Harry Potter, aka actor Daniel Radcliffe, who is... More... World's most famous wizard becomes invisible on first trip to Lord's 10:00AM Tuesday July 24, 2007 By David Llewellyn Daniel Radcliffe It was a wizard way to spend one's 18th birthday - and the four days leading up to it. Watching England take on India (and nearly win) at Lord's cricket ground in London. For Harry Potter, aka actor Daniel Radcliffe, who is more used to bowling maidens over in his guise as the apprentice wizard, it was a first visit to a cricket match. And he enjoyed every minute, as he told the BBC cricket correspondent Jonathan Agnew in Test Match Special's lunchtime interview yesterday. "The tabloid newspapers expected me to have some massive, extravagant birthday bash with lots of celebrities," said Radcliffe, who was sporting an England replica shirt, "but that is not my thing. Just to come here was a bit of a dream, really. I have never been to a cricket match before. I am 18 today and I'm very excited." Radcliffe, whose latest film, Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix, was premiered this month, was even able to sit in the Edrich Stand and then in the Compton Stand unrecognised for much of the time. In fact, one England cricketer failed to recognise Daniel when the actor asked for his autograph. "I've got Andrew Strauss's autograph and Sachin Tendulkar's - they were not aware who it was who was asking for their autograph. They were doing the thing that I do when I am in a crowd of people, which is to just keep your head down and keep moving as you sign." Strauss seems to have featured prominently recently in young Dan's life. Not so long ago he was in a nightmare that Radcliffe had. "I very vividly remember him [strauss] chasing me with a cricket bat, and it was during the West Indies series, where he wasn't in the greatest of form. "I mentioned [the dream] in a subsequent interview and I heard this Australian voice in the back of the room say, 'Don't worry, mate, he wouldn't be able to hit you even if he caught you'." When Strauss learnt that Agnew was to interview Radcliffe, he asked him to take a Harry Potter book to be signed for his son, Sam, aged 20 months. Radcliffe had not always been a cricket fan. "I got into it during the Ashes in which we were whitewashed, simply because of Paul Collingwood's double hundred at Adelaide, which is why he is my favourite player. "The thing about Collingwood's innings was the celebration when he got his double hundred. It was so impassioned, really inspirational. It was great. He gave a great cry, it was quite primeval and scary in a way, but I liked it all the same." - INDEPENDENT

[King]

Not so long ago he was in a nightmare that Radcliffe had. "I very vividly remember him [strauss] chasing me with a cricket bat, and it was during the West Indies series, where he wasn't in the greatest of form. "I mentioned [the dream] in a subsequent interview and I heard this Australian voice in the back of the room say, 'Don't worry, mate, he wouldn't be able to hit you even if he caught you'."

:hysterical: That is one top quote, what a fantastic sense of humour. :haha:

[Donny]

Oh damn! I thought it was about Murali. :sad_smile:

[Rajiv]

When Harry Potter queued for Tendulkar's autograph :haha::haha: London, July 25 (PTI): It was boy wizard meeting the batting wizard as Daniel Radcliffe, who plays Harry Potter on screen, queued for an autograph of Sachin Tendulkar at the end of India's drawn cricket Test match against England. Since the seventh and final volume of the "Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows" hit the stands, the whole world seems under the grip of a "Pottermania" but Potter himself seemed a great fan of the Indian batting maestro as he turned up on the final day of the Lord's Test match. Michael Vaughan's men, however, could not gift Daniel, who turned 18 yesterday, a birthday gift in the form of an England victory as rain denied the hosts a win that was just one wicket away. Himself target of autograph hunters worldwide, the actor admitted he queued with other fans to get signatures from Tendulkar and also Andrew Strauss. Interestingly, Daniel had recently spoken about a nightmare where he found himself stalked by the English opener. "I was telling people in a recent interview that I had a dream that Andrew Strauss was chasing me with a cricket bat. It was during the West Indies series when Andrew wasn't doing too well and an Australian who was listening in piped up and said 'I wouldn't worry about Strauss, if he had a swing at you at the moment he'd probably miss!'" The celebrity actor joined BBC's Test Match Special (TMS) team at lunch where he said he got into cricket last year when Ricky Ponting's men wrested the Ashes from the English squad. "Most people got into cricket when we won the Ashes; I got into it when we were beaten 5-0," he said. The actor said it was Paul Collingwood's gutsy double century in the Adelaide Test that drew him close to the game. "It was the celebration when he got to his 200, it was so impassioned. He gave a cry out when he did it - so emotional, almost primeval and a bit scary but really inspirational," he said. The constant Australian swagger in the series also forced him to root for his countrymen Down Under, Daniel said. Daniel was presented with a TMS birthday cake and after the match, the actor entered the England dressing room and met the players. Strauss obliged him with an autograph and also got one Harry Potter book signed by the actor for his child.

[varun]

Didn't know Radcliffe was a cricket fan

an Australian who was listening in piped up and said 'I wouldn't worry about Strauss, if he had a swing at you at the moment he'd probably miss!'"

:haha:

[yoda]

:giggle: