It will be momentous occasion for Pankaj Shaw when his son, Prithvi, 18, will become India's 293rd Test cricketer today on Day One of the opening Test against the West Indies here at the Saurashtra Cricket Association Stadium. However, Shaw Sr will stay put at his Juhu residence and be content with watching Prithvi's biggest moment on TV. "I am not going to Rajkot. I prefer being at home," Pankaj told mid-day over the phone from Mumbai yesterday. He wasn't around too when Prithvi made his Mumbai Ranji Trophy debut last year against Tamil Nadu at the same venue.

However, some of Pankaj's friends from Mumbai will be present at the stadium here to cheer for Prithvi while the nervous father will probably remain indoors back home, completely shutting himself off from everything else going on outside, just like he did when Prithvi led India to the U-19 World Cup title in New Zealand earlier this year.