It’s just that his reputation doesn’t play too well. Yusuf’s reputation has the attention span of a child. Face it, children prefer toys, and even if it’s cricket, they’re better off with a plastic bat and a soft ball.
Often I have seen Yusuf’s attention span waver mid way through a bowler’s run-up. Make that mid way through a spinner’s run up. It could be imaginary seagulls in landlocked Mohali that he once saw in Adelaide or sepia coloured childhood scenes of Irfan and him knocking the ball out of Baroda.
Writing about Yusuf challenges my attention span too. It’s the nature of the, yeah, something like that.
But I will say this, today, playing for Baroda, in some Ranji game, which was just not worth his while, he lasted a full fourteen deliveries. Or maybe he lasted thirteen, and got out on the fourteenth. His strike rate was a lowly 100. Earlier in the piece 100 runs were scored of his bowling. And though he did account for that vet Sunil Joshi’s wicket, it was his reputation that shaped Irfan’s knock off 52 of 50. Irfan knocked off two top order batsmen, but what the heck – he doesn’t have a reputation.
Unfortunately, Yusuf didn’t make the ODI squad. No more ducks for him.
On Bored: More and less of Yusuf Pathan
Showing posts with label Irfan Pathan. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Irfan Pathan. Show all posts
December 02, 2009
February 27, 2009
Who wants to be on a trip to New Zealand.
What am I doing on the flight to New Zealand?
What am I doing on the team bus?
What am I doing in the team?
What am I?
I am very lucky to be playing.
But I’m also very unlucky to be playing.
Each game I play makes it easier
for them to drop me
and not pick me again
for god knows how long.
The best they could’ve done for me
was just leave me out of the team.
Anyway, who the fuck wants to be on a trip to New Zealand.
April 17, 2008
Soviets and lefties.
Looks like India won the battle and didn’t lose the war either. When you win the last test in a series it’s an altogether different high - be it to seal or square a series or pick some hand-me-downs from the Aussies in a dead rubber. In dead rubbers, it appears, the Aussies go get a manicure – and choose not to dirty their hands with the efforts of a scorecard inspiring 4-0 win. 2-1 will do, thanks mate.
So while the Aussies pound teams in the virginal days of a series, it’s full time commitment that puts them off. Except when it’s the English they’re deflowering. That’s when even five-nil is an understatement. You have to delve into details. How many innings’ defeats? How many ten-wicket wins? Are the pommies scarred for life? Will they make it for the next Ashes?
And that is what separates two teams in a series, even when they are locked at one all. Like India-South Africa. Who, in Rameez Raja speak, dented the others’ confidence quite badly?
Even though India had the last laugh, what about Ahmedabad? Why did it happen? Does it necessitate a complete breakdown –followed by a rehab visit to get all cleaned up - to bounce back again?
Is team India just a motley crew of gifted cricketers put together– the Soviet Union of cricket. Also consider India’s policy on no-first-use of nukes! Hit us, then we’ll hit back, only harder.
Over to the Bong bombshell Saurav Ganguly, who’s nearly hooked up with the potential of his big box office debut. And though he didn’t chart a century at Kanpur, it set Sauravspeak in motion: his best innings, he says. Or did he mean, “one of”. Not as in “one off”. Either way, Dada was on: a left handed VVS Laxman.
Of the other lefties, Irfan Pathan wasn’t playing, Piyush Chawla got two wickets (and then wasn’t playing) and with Yuvraj Singh, the promoters wangled a 32 run item number.
Who’s left?
Gambhir for Jaffer?
Also don't be surprised if IPL performances decide the odd test slot.
By the way, Suresh Raina bats left handed too.
Looks like India won the battle and didn’t lose the war either. When you win the last test in a series it’s an altogether different high - be it to seal or square a series or pick some hand-me-downs from the Aussies in a dead rubber. In dead rubbers, it appears, the Aussies go get a manicure – and choose not to dirty their hands with the efforts of a scorecard inspiring 4-0 win. 2-1 will do, thanks mate.
So while the Aussies pound teams in the virginal days of a series, it’s full time commitment that puts them off. Except when it’s the English they’re deflowering. That’s when even five-nil is an understatement. You have to delve into details. How many innings’ defeats? How many ten-wicket wins? Are the pommies scarred for life? Will they make it for the next Ashes?
And that is what separates two teams in a series, even when they are locked at one all. Like India-South Africa. Who, in Rameez Raja speak, dented the others’ confidence quite badly?
Even though India had the last laugh, what about Ahmedabad? Why did it happen? Does it necessitate a complete breakdown –followed by a rehab visit to get all cleaned up - to bounce back again?
Is team India just a motley crew of gifted cricketers put together– the Soviet Union of cricket. Also consider India’s policy on no-first-use of nukes! Hit us, then we’ll hit back, only harder.
Over to the Bong bombshell Saurav Ganguly, who’s nearly hooked up with the potential of his big box office debut. And though he didn’t chart a century at Kanpur, it set Sauravspeak in motion: his best innings, he says. Or did he mean, “one of”. Not as in “one off”. Either way, Dada was on: a left handed VVS Laxman.
Of the other lefties, Irfan Pathan wasn’t playing, Piyush Chawla got two wickets (and then wasn’t playing) and with Yuvraj Singh, the promoters wangled a 32 run item number.
Who’s left?
Gambhir for Jaffer?
Also don't be surprised if IPL performances decide the odd test slot.
By the way, Suresh Raina bats left handed too.
April 07, 2008
Average Guys.
“You have been weighed, you have been measured and you have been found wanting.” - when Graeme Smith declared overnight, only 418 runs ahead, he had slapped India’s batsmen with their net worth in runs. Had Smith a sense of humour, he would have declared at 152 – 76 runs ahead of India’s similar first innings total. However, taking into account inflation and a true 3rd day wicket, 494 for 7 declared was almost bold for the South Africans.
Here was a team that reveled in playing oppositions into the ground, specially the likes of New Zealand, Bangladesh and other one-day wonders. This however, was India. Fresh from one man’s wonder in Chennai, and a one test wonder in Australia. But with such teams, before long, wonders cease.
What’s disturbing is how the team selection plays blind man’s bluff. Presumably, the Aussie summer (along with Ponting) belonged to Ishant Sharma; but he only played after an injury to Zaheer Khan. Just as Sehwag played at Perth after the twin faults of Melbourne and Sydney. Or Irfan Pathan played here, because of Sachin Tendulkar’s injury. Or as Piyush Chawla may play in Kanpur.
Pathan’s inclusion may be the least of India’s concerns. He remained not out in both innings, scoring a fun 21 and 43. He bowled 21 listless overs, uncannily similar to R.P. Singh –in both input and output. Forget the Australia tour, darling, yeh hai India!
But how does a bowling all-rounder replace Sachin Tendulkar? Had Tendulkar played this test, would Pathan have played too? Unlikely. But he played due to a vacancy, while India couldn’t decide whether it was a seaming wicket or a spinning track. Also India had to first play its two best bowlers (on reputation, seniority, captaincy), so Anil Kumble and Harbhajan Singh picked themselves. But there was some green on the wicket. And India got greedy and took Tendulkar’s unavailability as a sign from God knows who. They decided to play Pathan in addition to the opening bowlers.
That R.P Singh was rueful at Chennai, in addition to being unfit did not matter. Most players carry niggles anyway – an injury occurs only when you’re fully incapacitated. Also there was a game to be won: three quicks, two spinners, let’s pulverize the Proteas with all we got!
By the time Pathan played his role as a bowler, the match was lost many times over. But to make sense of his selection, let’s flip Pathan’s role – and call him a batting all-rounder. Let’s revisit Jacque Kallis’ modest beginnings as a test batsman: initially Kallis’ test match average hovered in the 30s. But it wasn’t long before his average shot up through the 40s to the high 50s of today. While comparing Pathan to Kallis is nigh ridiculous, it’s a pointer for Indian cricket - to decide what it wants from Irfan. Kallis was always a batsman first, and then the 3rd or 4th bowler, in spite of being one of the world’s leading allrounders.
Repeatedly against the South Africans (in the tour games to that country) and now in Ahmedabad, Pathan has shown enough skill as a middle-lower order batsman against quick bowling to be taken seriously. But it’s his bowling that has failed him; at least in India. While the multiple roles, from test opener to pinch hitter at number three, in addition to the Chappell-Dravid experiments, have only confounded matters, it’s worth asking, why is only Irfan Pathan deemed special enough to be experimented with?
Today, Pathan’s test batting average is in the low 30s, much like his bowling average. Dhoni’s test batting average is a tad higher than Pathan’s. But while Dhoni is a power center, Pathan is a mere pawn. In spite of this, Pathan continues to look good with the bat.
Another player who has looked good with the bat is Saurav Ganguly. Over the last year, he’s scored regularly. His career average is in the 40s, as is VVS Laxman’s, who has also had a good last year. Not so with Rahul Dravid, in spite of which he’s still perceived as India’s most reliable test batsman. Most impactful batsman: Virender Sehwag. Most influential batsman: Sachin Tendulkar. The last three with test averages in the 50s. Untouchables?
In the make-believe joint family of Indian test cricket, all these batsmen should play together in harmony. But after 76 all out, there is a dire need for accountability. And frankly dropping Wasim Jaffer, Irfan Pathan or R.P. Singh, and including Piyush Chawla, Ishant Sharma or even Munaf Patel is far from the answer.
This cannot be more dirt under the carpet like the World Cup first round ouster. Where players conveniently return after a short sojourn. Until the time when a Dhoni wins a World Cup and demands his own one-day team.
What happened? And why did it happen? Can the shareholders of Indian cricket have some answers?
Or do we continue to blame an expendable opener or lower middle batsman? That is always easier. As the highly respectable batting averages continue to maintain themselves. With some feel good cosmetic changes to the team. And the circus moves on to the next town!
“You have been weighed, you have been measured and you have been found wanting.” - when Graeme Smith declared overnight, only 418 runs ahead, he had slapped India’s batsmen with their net worth in runs. Had Smith a sense of humour, he would have declared at 152 – 76 runs ahead of India’s similar first innings total. However, taking into account inflation and a true 3rd day wicket, 494 for 7 declared was almost bold for the South Africans.
Here was a team that reveled in playing oppositions into the ground, specially the likes of New Zealand, Bangladesh and other one-day wonders. This however, was India. Fresh from one man’s wonder in Chennai, and a one test wonder in Australia. But with such teams, before long, wonders cease.
What’s disturbing is how the team selection plays blind man’s bluff. Presumably, the Aussie summer (along with Ponting) belonged to Ishant Sharma; but he only played after an injury to Zaheer Khan. Just as Sehwag played at Perth after the twin faults of Melbourne and Sydney. Or Irfan Pathan played here, because of Sachin Tendulkar’s injury. Or as Piyush Chawla may play in Kanpur.
Pathan’s inclusion may be the least of India’s concerns. He remained not out in both innings, scoring a fun 21 and 43. He bowled 21 listless overs, uncannily similar to R.P. Singh –in both input and output. Forget the Australia tour, darling, yeh hai India!
But how does a bowling all-rounder replace Sachin Tendulkar? Had Tendulkar played this test, would Pathan have played too? Unlikely. But he played due to a vacancy, while India couldn’t decide whether it was a seaming wicket or a spinning track. Also India had to first play its two best bowlers (on reputation, seniority, captaincy), so Anil Kumble and Harbhajan Singh picked themselves. But there was some green on the wicket. And India got greedy and took Tendulkar’s unavailability as a sign from God knows who. They decided to play Pathan in addition to the opening bowlers.
That R.P Singh was rueful at Chennai, in addition to being unfit did not matter. Most players carry niggles anyway – an injury occurs only when you’re fully incapacitated. Also there was a game to be won: three quicks, two spinners, let’s pulverize the Proteas with all we got!
By the time Pathan played his role as a bowler, the match was lost many times over. But to make sense of his selection, let’s flip Pathan’s role – and call him a batting all-rounder. Let’s revisit Jacque Kallis’ modest beginnings as a test batsman: initially Kallis’ test match average hovered in the 30s. But it wasn’t long before his average shot up through the 40s to the high 50s of today. While comparing Pathan to Kallis is nigh ridiculous, it’s a pointer for Indian cricket - to decide what it wants from Irfan. Kallis was always a batsman first, and then the 3rd or 4th bowler, in spite of being one of the world’s leading allrounders.
Repeatedly against the South Africans (in the tour games to that country) and now in Ahmedabad, Pathan has shown enough skill as a middle-lower order batsman against quick bowling to be taken seriously. But it’s his bowling that has failed him; at least in India. While the multiple roles, from test opener to pinch hitter at number three, in addition to the Chappell-Dravid experiments, have only confounded matters, it’s worth asking, why is only Irfan Pathan deemed special enough to be experimented with?
Today, Pathan’s test batting average is in the low 30s, much like his bowling average. Dhoni’s test batting average is a tad higher than Pathan’s. But while Dhoni is a power center, Pathan is a mere pawn. In spite of this, Pathan continues to look good with the bat.
Another player who has looked good with the bat is Saurav Ganguly. Over the last year, he’s scored regularly. His career average is in the 40s, as is VVS Laxman’s, who has also had a good last year. Not so with Rahul Dravid, in spite of which he’s still perceived as India’s most reliable test batsman. Most impactful batsman: Virender Sehwag. Most influential batsman: Sachin Tendulkar. The last three with test averages in the 50s. Untouchables?
In the make-believe joint family of Indian test cricket, all these batsmen should play together in harmony. But after 76 all out, there is a dire need for accountability. And frankly dropping Wasim Jaffer, Irfan Pathan or R.P. Singh, and including Piyush Chawla, Ishant Sharma or even Munaf Patel is far from the answer.
This cannot be more dirt under the carpet like the World Cup first round ouster. Where players conveniently return after a short sojourn. Until the time when a Dhoni wins a World Cup and demands his own one-day team.
What happened? And why did it happen? Can the shareholders of Indian cricket have some answers?
Or do we continue to blame an expendable opener or lower middle batsman? That is always easier. As the highly respectable batting averages continue to maintain themselves. With some feel good cosmetic changes to the team. And the circus moves on to the next town!
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