Kapil Dev would be joined in the Ranji trophy team of J&K by somebody who was once touted to be India’s next big allrounder after Paaji himself. Irfan Pathan has readily accepted the offer for a dual role in the state Ranji team.
Apart from this Irfan will also be involved in upliftment projects of Jammu Kashmir cricket and the overall development of the game in this region. This is what the allrounder had to say after the news broke out –
“I will be playing a role of mentor cum player for Ranji trophy side but at the same time, I will be looking after the development of cricket in terms of giving advice to junior cricketers as well and trying to play as important a role as possible. Most importantly I will be a helping hand to J&K to develop district cricket. There are about more than 20 districts here in the state and they don’t have great facilities. They have mattings and all but the talent is definitely there”
Irfan has been roped in by the J&K Cricket Association for a one-year term and will also be holding coaching clinics in various parts of the state. After the confirmation, the Baroda and India all-rounder interacted with young cricketers at the Sher-i-Kashmir Stadium in Srinagar. He asked them to work hard on their game in order to achieve their dream of reaching the higher level.
“I really believe there was a time when international cricketers mainly came from metro cities, then players like me, Yusuf Pathan, MS Dhoni, Suresh Raina changed that notion and small-town boys did wonder for India. If you go further one step ahead, district cricket will have a lot of talent as well. I am going to travel to small districts in J&K and it’s a great task which I am looking forward to. I am keen to do well personally as well and excited for this journey but at the same time, I want to make a difference to Jammu Kashmir cricket as well. All in all super ready for this”
Pathan, who played 29 Tests, 120 ODIs and 24 T20 Internationals for India between 2003 and 2012, burst onto the scene as one of the most prodigiously talented bowlers and his hat-trick in a foggy morning against Pakistan in Karachi has still been a huge part of the Indian cricket’s lore.
He is certainly not accepting this contract for money because the guy has dropped lucrative deals worth crores of rupees of the Caribbean Premier League (CPL), Bangladesh Premier League and T-10 bonanza.
Clearly heartthrob of many cricket fans world over, Irfan has chosen to contribute something worthy for Jammu Kashmir and the public and authorities should appreciate this decision. We love you Champion.
