The day Don Bradman died was a bit like the numbers he posted. Big. It started in the wee hours and didn’t finish until the same time next day. The Australian cricket team and accompanying media were at the Taj Hotel in Mumbai. News of Bradman’s passing came from Channel 9’s HQ in Sydney. Obviously, they wanted reaction from India — Shane Warne, Sachin Tendulkar and Steve Waugh, especially Tendulkar and Warne given their well- documented meeting with Bradman. 

I went down to the Taj foyer, where I met Clayton Murzello and Brian Murgatroyd, the team’s diligent and disciplined media manager. I think Brian let every player know via a handwritten note placed through a mail slot or slid under their room door. But time zones meant deadlines were red-lining with Sydney demanding interviews sooner than later. Clayton instantly offered to do half my job.