What’s keeping you busy these days?

 

I haven’t taken any holidays recently. Training and the usual sponsor commitments, along with our hectic schedule of matches, keep me pretty busy.

 

What is your biggest regret?

 

That would be not getting myself together before the 2011 World Cup. Not making it to that squad gutted me. It shattered me, but I picked myself up. I got myself in order and haven’t looked back since.

 

What do you consider your biggest achievement?

 

Every time I step onto the field, contribute to the national team and make my country proud is an achievement for me. I have a few feathers in my cap that I am proud of. The 209 against Australia is a feat I will always cherish because it made me one of the only three people in the world to score a one-day double century. It put me in the company of two legends, Sachin [Tendulkar] and [Virender] Sehwag. Helping India win the 2007 T20 World Cup in South Africa is another.

 

What resolution do you keep breaking?

 

To stop biting my nails. My best friend nags me about it all the time. So, just to get her off my back, for two years in a row, I’ve made it a New Year’s resolution to stop, but I keep forgetting to carry a nail cutter.

 

What one thing should every man know about women?

 

They say a lot when they say nothing at all. Also, chocolates work way better than flowers.

 

What is your biggest desire?

 

To be successful in Test cricket.

 

What are you searching for?

 

My phone and my keys. On a serious note, I guess I’m always looking for ways to outdo myself.

 

What one experience changed your life?

 

There are three. Having my coach, Dinesh Lad, show confidence in me and help me hone my skills, getting selected in the Indian team and becoming captain of Mumbai Indians.

 

What is your favourite place on earth?

 

Home. And, New York City.

 

What irritates you most about people?

 

When they are fake, and when they talk incessantly.

 

What skills should every man have?

 

Every man should have the ability to make his woman feel safe and have a good sense of humour. And, he should know the specs of the cars he loves.

 

Who has been your inspiration?

 

My grandparents, my father and my mother.

 

What word or phrase do you overuse?

 

“Let’s hug it out”. The other phrases are all abusive. I’m obsessed with the TV show Entourage, and Ari Gold (a celebrity agent who often goes on long, obscene tirades) is my favourite character. Enough said.

 

If you could live someone else’s life for a day, whose would it be?

 

Ari Gold.

 

What is your biggest fear?

 

Being stranded in the middle of the ocean. I’m not the best swimmer, and the deep sea freaks me out.

 

What virtue is overrated?

 

Patience. I say, stay restless.

 

What makes you happy?

 

The little things.