In the Mumbai Indians dressing room, Shaun Pollock has been re-christened. They call him Polly Kaka, a nickname lovingly given to the late Test all-rounder Polly Umrigar. The local youngsters in the team take liberties with the South African great who has gracefully adjusted to the new environment. The new Polly Kaka has increased his vocabulary with ‘Aala arre’ and ‘duniya hila denge’ being his two pet phrases that usually trigger peels of laughter.

The name was given to Pollock by Mumbai Indians coach and former Test opener Lalchand Rajput. “I started calling him Polly Kaka and everybody followed. He deserves to be called by that name. Like the late Mr Umrigar, Pollock is a top-class performer with amazing consistency,” said Rajput, minutes after Pollock had collected his second Man of the Match Award of the tournament.

Rajput says he has told the youngsters to call him by that name and has made them understand that this isn’t a joke but a way of respecting the great South African all-rounder. But that is no big effort considering the way the youngsters look up to Pollock.