'Rani played square cut perfectly'

Actress Rani Mukherjee is in news these days for her portrayal of a cricketer in the upcoming movie Dil Bole Hadippa. But no one knows that Rani had a tough time learning the tricks of the gentleman's game.

Former Indian cricketer, Anjali Pandharkar, who taught Rani how to play cricket can't stop praising the actress.

When asked how tough it was for her to train Rani she said, "Before I trained her, Rani had never even held a bat ever in her life. So, you can imagine how difficult it would have been for me to teach her. It was a big challenge, but the best part is that Rani has a good grasping power and she has been a very obedient student."

Asked if she ever lost her cool while teaching Rani, Anjali said: "Had I lost my cool, it would have given an adverse impact on her training. So, I kept motivating her to learn new shots."

Talking further about how her training sessions Anjali said: "Rani is either batting or fielding in the whole movie. So, I trained her to bat and field. In the first few weeks she did shadow practice in which she hit bats in air without any ball. After some time she did the same with static ball. She took almost six months to learn all this. In fact, one day I took her to a Ranji Trophy match in Mumbai so that she could get the feel of the game. She spent the whole day there. The whole experience was very encouraging for her."

Anjali also revealed that Rani Mukherjee surprised her by playing the square cut shot to perfection. "The square cut is a very difficult shot for any player. But Rani played the shot with perfection."

Asked if Rani is trained to the extent that she could join Indian Women's Cricket team Anjali said, "She still needs a lot of practice for that. In fact, I invited her for the selection process for the State Cricket Team in Mumbai."

Summing up the whole experience, Anjali said, "I have never taught someone who never held a bat ever in her life. So, it was a learning experience for me as well. Now with all these efforts I hope the film should do well."