Former Indian cricket stars led by Kapil Dev had a go at the Australian team led by the mercurial Dean Jones. The event hailed as the `Clash of the Titans' was an attempt to popularise the sport of golf with the help of cricket.

Though the mood back at the clubhouse was that of partying, the players on the greens thought otherwise. Jones, who retired from first class cricket two months ago, was here to pursue his new passion, golf. And he made his intentions very clear before the `clash'.

``I did not travel 16 hours and come down here to be beaten by Kapil Dev,'' said the Australian about his teams' prospects. And to prove his keenness, he insisted on seeing his opponents' golf handicaps before he teed-off from the first hole.

Roger Binny, Syed Kirmani, Gundappa Viswanath, Ashok Mankad,Yajuvendra Singh and Karsan Ghavri formed the impressive list of Kapil's team. Not to be quelled down by Jones's challenge, the current Mumbai coach Mankad said, ``I thank Dean Jones on behalf of the Indians for having come all the way from Australia only to play this exhibition event. All that amicability only before we tee-off!'' he added, pointing towards Jones. But incessant rains dampened everyone's spirits and the cricketers' wish of making a point with the irons and the woods, for a change.

The crowd, however, was not complaining. Because rains brought the stars inside the clubhouse, only for their fans to spend more time with them. And the most sought-after person of the day was Kapil Dev. So much was the hustle-bustle around the man who led India to its only World Cup victory that the former Indian captain spent most of his time posing for pictures and signing autographs. When one such youngster came up to him, Kapil involuntarily took the paper from the kid's hand and was about to sign it whencame the `bouncer': ``Who are you?'' ``I am Kapil Dev, who are you?'' boomed the star. And while he signed, came the `yorker'. ``I need your autograph...your autograph,'' insisted the kid who could not understand his hasty scribbling. For once, it was Kapil's turn to be `bowled'.