NumbaOneStunna
March 25th, 2004, 06:38 PM
Bangalore: Contrary to the usual perception of ‘madrasas’ (Islamic schools) — the ground zero of fundamentalism — there is one in Gujarat that is throwing up cricketers as well.
Irfan Pathan was born in Baroda and brought up in the Mandvi Jama Masjid. His father, Mehmood Khan, is a muezzin (the person who calls for prayers) of the local mosque and the family runs a small ‘attar’ (perfume) shop just outside the mosque for a living.
No wonder, when Irfan Pathan speaks, every sentence uttered is laced with an InshAllah (God willing) and MashAllah (May God be pleased) — perhaps a reflection of his religious background.
But instead of wearing a skullcap and memorising the holy verses, like many of the young boys who visited the mosque, Pathan preferred to play soft ball cricket with his brother in the ‘sehan’ (foreground) of the mosque. The result? The perturbed ‘namaazis’ took their complaints to young Irfan’s father.
“My father never played cricket but that did not force him to stop us from playing. Then people complained about us playing in one corner but even that didn’t work. So he asked us to go and play in the mohalla,” Pathan, currently playing the Salve-Challenger Trophy for India ‘A’, recalled with a smirk.
Mohalla cricket was soon stopped after an objection from mother Shamim Bano, who was apprehensive that it would lead the young boys to ‘other things’. But after realising his son’s passion for the game, she made his uncle, Ahmed Miya, a club cricketer himself, take them under his fold.
Soon, the young Pathan was introduced to the world of Baroda Sports Club where his coaches — Mehndi Sheikh and Bashir Sheikh — took him under their wings. There has been no turning back ever since.
“My uncle always encouraged us and since he was a cricketer himself, he spotted the talent in me and pursued. I really owe it to him,” he said.
Although just 18, the young left-arm seamer has been making rapid strides. After representing India regularly at the junior level, he has now the threshold of breaking into the senior side after breaking into the Indian ‘A’ side recently.
Another notable thing about Pathan is that he has a sensible head on his broad shoulders and, unlike many young men of his age, keeps a low profile and tries to better his game. For that he thanks his habit of offering namaz regularly.
“Namaaz helps me keep a level head, remember where I come from and stay focused,” he said. He’s also a thinking fast bowler, though some pundits may not quite agree with that. And though he can generate a fair amount of pace, Pathan prefers to hold back.
“I bowl according to the situation. If the occasion arises, then I really bend my back but if a batsman is set, I try to swing the ball,” he said.
A fine example of that was in the way he plotted Sourav Ganguly’s dismissal in the first match of the Challenger Series here. “I was bowling at him for the first time, so I was a little excited. It was worth an experience since I was bowling to one of the big names in Indian cricket. My only effort was not to give him room to free his arms.
“Our plan was to pitch it short for him. Though we overdid that initially, but in that over I pitched three balls up and then dug one short. He fell for it,” Pathan said.
A young fast bowler normally has an idol and Pathan is lucky in that sense. One of his idols is Zaheer Khan, his Baroda teammate. “Zaheerbhai helps me a lot with my bowling action. In the one week I got to train with him, he taught me the nuances of follow-through. Whenever he gets a chance, he passes me a few tips, which I follow,” he said.
Like all young aspiring cricketers, Pathan wants to play for India. “Everyone has one goal: to play for India. I also have the same goal but, most importantly, I want to stay there (in the team) for a long time. But I have to work hard for that… really hard.”
But the sudden spurt of pacemen in the country has increased the competition to break into the Indian team, though that has strengthened his resolve.
“It is a good thing that the competition is growing because in that case one will never get lazy and only work harder,” he said. “Apart from working on my bowling I am trying to improve my batting as well. I feel I can be a good all-rounder. I’m working hard... baaki Allah ki marzi.”
Irfan Pathan was born in Baroda and brought up in the Mandvi Jama Masjid. His father, Mehmood Khan, is a muezzin (the person who calls for prayers) of the local mosque and the family runs a small ‘attar’ (perfume) shop just outside the mosque for a living.
No wonder, when Irfan Pathan speaks, every sentence uttered is laced with an InshAllah (God willing) and MashAllah (May God be pleased) — perhaps a reflection of his religious background.
But instead of wearing a skullcap and memorising the holy verses, like many of the young boys who visited the mosque, Pathan preferred to play soft ball cricket with his brother in the ‘sehan’ (foreground) of the mosque. The result? The perturbed ‘namaazis’ took their complaints to young Irfan’s father.
“My father never played cricket but that did not force him to stop us from playing. Then people complained about us playing in one corner but even that didn’t work. So he asked us to go and play in the mohalla,” Pathan, currently playing the Salve-Challenger Trophy for India ‘A’, recalled with a smirk.
Mohalla cricket was soon stopped after an objection from mother Shamim Bano, who was apprehensive that it would lead the young boys to ‘other things’. But after realising his son’s passion for the game, she made his uncle, Ahmed Miya, a club cricketer himself, take them under his fold.
Soon, the young Pathan was introduced to the world of Baroda Sports Club where his coaches — Mehndi Sheikh and Bashir Sheikh — took him under their wings. There has been no turning back ever since.
“My uncle always encouraged us and since he was a cricketer himself, he spotted the talent in me and pursued. I really owe it to him,” he said.
Although just 18, the young left-arm seamer has been making rapid strides. After representing India regularly at the junior level, he has now the threshold of breaking into the senior side after breaking into the Indian ‘A’ side recently.
Another notable thing about Pathan is that he has a sensible head on his broad shoulders and, unlike many young men of his age, keeps a low profile and tries to better his game. For that he thanks his habit of offering namaz regularly.
“Namaaz helps me keep a level head, remember where I come from and stay focused,” he said. He’s also a thinking fast bowler, though some pundits may not quite agree with that. And though he can generate a fair amount of pace, Pathan prefers to hold back.
“I bowl according to the situation. If the occasion arises, then I really bend my back but if a batsman is set, I try to swing the ball,” he said.
A fine example of that was in the way he plotted Sourav Ganguly’s dismissal in the first match of the Challenger Series here. “I was bowling at him for the first time, so I was a little excited. It was worth an experience since I was bowling to one of the big names in Indian cricket. My only effort was not to give him room to free his arms.
“Our plan was to pitch it short for him. Though we overdid that initially, but in that over I pitched three balls up and then dug one short. He fell for it,” Pathan said.
A young fast bowler normally has an idol and Pathan is lucky in that sense. One of his idols is Zaheer Khan, his Baroda teammate. “Zaheerbhai helps me a lot with my bowling action. In the one week I got to train with him, he taught me the nuances of follow-through. Whenever he gets a chance, he passes me a few tips, which I follow,” he said.
Like all young aspiring cricketers, Pathan wants to play for India. “Everyone has one goal: to play for India. I also have the same goal but, most importantly, I want to stay there (in the team) for a long time. But I have to work hard for that… really hard.”
But the sudden spurt of pacemen in the country has increased the competition to break into the Indian team, though that has strengthened his resolve.
“It is a good thing that the competition is growing because in that case one will never get lazy and only work harder,” he said. “Apart from working on my bowling I am trying to improve my batting as well. I feel I can be a good all-rounder. I’m working hard... baaki Allah ki marzi.”