Temptation to play will always be there: Laxman

Mohali: When a lot of his contemporaries are still wielding their bats in the IPL while he is mentoring one of the teams, VVS Laxman today said it takes some effort to resist the temptation of playing again.

"The temptation will always be there because the greed of playing cricket will never die down. Consciously I make an effort not to think about it now that I know I am not actively playing cricket," 38-year-old Laxman, who had surprised everyone with his sudden retirement from international cricket last year, told reporters here. Many players, who are older than Laxman, such as Sachin Tendulkar, Rahul Dravid, Ricky Ponting and Adam Gilchrist are part of the ongoing Indian Premier Leage. Laxman, who featured in 134 Tests and 86 ODIs, however, said that he was enjoying his current role as a mentor of the Hyderabad team and in that way continues to maintain connection with the game he loves so much. "There is a conscious effort from me not to miss the game. I think it`s a great opportunity to be a part of IPL, to be part of such a good franchise. I am really enjoying my role as a mentor with the Sunrisers. "The quality of players we’ve got in this group is really exciting and that?s what makes my role more exciting. It`s also good to be associated with this game, share your experiences over so many years with the younger lot," he said. PTI