Athers, Sunny and I

First time in the Indian dressing room
After a warm-up game in my debut Test series [v New Zealand, 2003-04] Sachin Tendulkar asked me, "How did [Daniel] Vettori bowl?" He probably wanted to make me feel comfortable, because I would never have had the guts to go and speak to him. "Did he bowl that armer?" I said, "No, he didn't." He said "Watch out for that. He'll do it in the Test."

First bat bought
Vats Hot Shot was the first branded bat I bought, for Rs 450. It got stolen very soon. I was travelling in a bus and someone snatched it and ran away.

First meeting with an idol
I'd always wanted to meet Michael Atherton - my idol, even if he may not quite be a legend. I used to follow his batting very closely. A few years ago, when England toured India, I travelled up to Mohali and met him. He told me a lot of things about batting that actually helped. One thing he said that will always stay with me was, "Aakash, don't forget why we play this game. People like you and I, who take a lot of pride and spend a lot of time getting the technique right, we get too caught up and stuck up and stop enjoying the game. The idea of playing the game is to enjoy it." He had retired by then and had seen both sides. He suggested I should relax and things would happen. And things have started to happen.

First cricket book read
Sunny Days, Sunil Gavaskar's diary of his debut tours of West Indies and England in 1971. Papa got that from a public library. It was a huge inspiration and I fantasised about scoring a double-century in my first game. You need heroes to get positively influenced and inspired.

First ball faced in first-class cricket
It was a cover-driven boundary at the Palam grounds, off Sanjeev Mishra, a medium-pacer. I went on to make 150 in that game. It was a memorable beginning to my career.