Hellish morning after

I may have left all my discipline out at the batting crease and not carried any with me into retirement © Getty Images Enlarge

It was in my first year of commentary working for Sky TV in New Zealand and I'll chalk this episode down to inexperience. Ian Smith who is the anchor for Sky's cricket coverage hosted a party at his place during a game between New Zealand and West Indies. Let's just say that Smithie is a generous host and I enjoyed the evening perhaps a bit too much. I could also put this episode down to the fact that I may have left all my discipline out at the batting crease and not carried any with me into retirement.

Anyway I shaped up the next morning a little worse for wear. Because I present Sky's cricket magazine show - "Cricket Company" - I had a little interviewing to do before play and had a three-way talk with Chris Cairns and the renowned West Indian broadcaster Tony Cozier who was meeting me for the first time.

Midway through the interview I began to feel rather nauseous and thought it best to cut the interview short, which was a good plan except that Tony Cozier could talk the hind legs off a donkey: he went on and on. I had started to sweat. When he finished and just as I pulled the microphone back towards me to finish matters, Cairnsy piped up. My god!

By this stage I had gone green and I felt I was seconds from passing out. I didn't pass out, but as the camera focused in on a single headshot of myself to give my closing out I threw up. Both Tony and Chris legged it for cover, the people in the broadcast truck nearly wet themselves, and I headed for the toilets as by now I feared I was going to burst at both ends. I didn't make it to the toilet and luckily only the top orifice was exploding, but the next pile of peas and carrots I left behind was in the corner of the National Bank marquee (New Zealand Cricket's main sponsor). I'm lucky to still have my job.