And while Sachin was putting a razor to his cheek (incidentally, he's looking remarkably trim having lost 10 kilos, probably a result of his special fitness programme), Ajit Agarkar, Nikhil Chopra, and Vijay Bharadwaj were sweating it out in the fitness centre. Only Agarkar and Chopra weren't exactly pumping iron, just getting a haircut, a shampoo and a pumped-up champi. Obviously, the Guwahati match and the flight had taken their toll, leaving all three looking pretty listless. ``We are so tired we probably can't even make it to any disco in town,'' laughed Agarkar.

Another person who was cheerful was G RYadav, the receptionist at the fitness centre, recalling anecdotes about sundry teams. But his favourite player, Ajay Jadeja, was yet to check in. Jadeja reportedly even sought Yadav's help one time in sneaking home to have ``maa ka banaya khana''. And if Jadeja seems to be mama's boy, a lot of teeny-boppers would probably give their right hands to be in T Kumaran's place, given that he is sharing a room with that other heart-throb, Rahul Dravid. Meanwhile, Sunil Joshi was a much-harried man as the team's luggage landed late, and he was left without any ironed clothes to wear to the High Commission. ``Kyaa yaar, this is not done, I have been waiting for an hour for my luggage to be sent up,'' he cribbed while wheeling his suitcase to the elevator, prompting the hotel staff to send out an SOS to the laundry section. In fact, both Joshi and Bharadwaj had to rush downstairs to identify and pick up their luggage.

Sachin, however, was all sweetness in his suite, signing autographs for a couple of kids who wereso overawed by the great man they could barely say `hi'.

The Kiwis left much earlier, trooping out soon after checking in, in identical green checked shirts and grey trousers. But they have reportedly asked for a complete media blanket at the nets on Tuesday at the Palam Air Force grounds.

What they have also asked for is at least four litres of water per player for the nets, besides a lots of electrolytes. And their physiotherapist, Mark Harrison, has reportedly asked the Taj Palace kitchen for a menu that will go with his team's preparation. While the low-calorie part is a given, the Kiwi team is going to have continental food on the table, lots of white meat, some lean red meat, most of it grilled. As for who gets grilled on the field, that will have to wait until Wednesday.