Pestonji’s prowess

At 61 years of age, Cyrus Pestonji has remained unbeaten in local table tennis tournaments organized by the Australian Zoroastrian Association (AZA) for the last 30 years. Ranked Punjab’s No. 1 in table tennis in Lahore in the 1970s, after he relocated to Sydney in 1981 he had represented the Western District Table Tennis Association.
In cricket too Pestonji continues to dominate the game at local matches organized by the AZA having played with and against Pakistan Test cricketers Imran Khan, Majid Khan, Mohsin Khan and Wasim Raja in Lahore and with Australian Test cricketers Greg Matthews, Dave Gilbert and Dirk Welham in the 1980s in Sydney grade cricket.
"My first cricket match was for Lahore Parsees when I was 11 and others were aged over 20,” recalls the modest Pestonji. "I remember the opposition captain asking his fast bowler to bowl slowly in case I got hurt. But after the first over and a few fours, he told the bowler, ‘Bowl as normal!’

Cyrus Pestonji: senior sportsman

"I vividly remember an inter-school match which included a huge, tall and fearsome fast bowler. Our opening batsman was soon bowled by this monster bowler and I went in to bat at No. 3. I was apprehensive but remained outwardly calm. The next thing I knew, the ball was on its way to the fence. This was the start of an understanding that bigger and faster is not always better, and technique and self-confidence are very important.”
In college he had former Pakistan Test cricketer Nazar Mohammad as the team coach. (Nazar Mohammad had scored a century for Pakistan against India in the Lucknow Test in 1952 as Hanif Mohammed’s opening partner.) "He helped me to develop the finer points of cricket and mental toughness.” When studying for his degree in electronics from the University of Engineering and Technology in Lahore, he represented his University in both cricket and table tennis, earning Sportsman of the Year award from the University. He also played for the Punjab table tennis team in Interstate championships.
But for studies and work commitment he could have played first-class cricket. Having obtained an MBA from Macquirie University, Sydney, he has been working with Hewlett-Packard for the last 24 years, his current designation being director, Channel Services with responsibilities across Asia, including Japan.
Among the memorable cricket matches he played in Australia was the one for Western Suburbs under the captaincy of Test all-rounder Greg Matthews, hitting a match-winning century against Sydney. "I do remember the century I hit for Western Suburbs in grade cricket as it was something special for me. We were chasing a big total of 305 against Sydney XI and were six down for 129 when I went in to bat, staring a big defeat. I remember telling myself to remain calm. At the end of the day I was 122 not out with my team winning by three wickets.”
He even represented the Indo-Australian Cricket Club. At AZA matches he was known to hit unbeaten 40s and 50s and at one stage he averaged 168 runs with the bat. When playing in the Indian Cultural Tournament in 1990 against St Patricks, Pestonji scored a century.
Known to be invincible in Lahore at the YMCA table tennis tournaments ever since he was 13 he continued to show his prowess at the game for the Western District Table Tennis Association in Sydney grade championships.
He comes from a sporting family. His great-grandfather Burjor Machliwalla had represented India in cricket. His father Jal Pestonji played for Parsis in Pentangular hockey tournaments between Hindus, Parsis, Sikhs, Muslims and Europeans. His father and father-in-law Boni Marolia (captain of Lahore Parsees in various sports) got him interested in cricket, table tennis, badminton and hockey.
"The best advice I received was from my wife Khursheed’s uncle Bejan Sidhwa (now in Toronto). I represented the Lahore Parsees team when 11. We were chasing a score of over 200 and were seven for 70. When I commented that ‘it’s all over now,’ he told me, ‘Cyrus, this is cricket, you never say die.’ He went in and won the game for us. I have not forgotten that advice.”
Father of two sports-loving sons Sheriar and Asfandiar, Cyrus’ favorite memory is hitting the legendary Imran Khan for boundaries off consecutive balls in the late 1970s.