Tag Archives: Indian Muslims Cricketers

In a first, 18-year-old Guntur boy makes it to CSK squad

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Guntur, ANDHRA PRADESH:

Despite the financial difficulties, Rasheed’s father, Shaik Balisha Vali, also a cricket-lover, left no stone unturned for Rasheed’s coaching.

Guntur :

For the first time, a cricketer from Guntur has been chosen to be a part of the Indian Premier League (IPL). As soon as the mini-auction of 405 players concluded in Kerala’s Kochi, the citizens rejoiced and basked in the glory of Shaik Rasheed, who made it to the player pool of Chennai Super Kings (CSK).

Born in Guntur on September 24, 2004, Rasheed’s claim to fame was his impressive performance in the Andhra Premiere League 2022. Perhaps, his crucial role in India winning the Under-19 World Cup and as vice-captain of the team caught attention of the CSK franchise.

Currently playing the Ranji Trophy in Tamil Nadu, the 18-year-old has been signed for a base price of Rs 20 lakh.The all-rounder also happens to be an ardent fan of MS Dhoni. Only after the team of 15 cricketers is finalised, will we know whether or not Rasheed will get to play alongside his role model.

Despite the financial difficulties, Rasheed’s father, Shaik Balisha Vali, also a cricket-lover, left no stone unturned for Rasheed’s coaching.“We are so elated that he is living his dream. When I watched him play with such zeal, I decided to support him and send him for professional training. We had no second thoughts. He also worked very hard to reach the position he is at now,” an elated Balisha expressed.    

When he accompanied Rasheed for training in Hyderabad, he had to pick up odd jobs to support the family. “My son has admired Dhoni since the time he started playing gully cricket when he was just six years old. Now, getting an opportunity to play alongside him will be his dream come true,” Balisha said.

Dad picks cue, extends support
Balisha Vali, was the first to identify his son’s passion. His first cue was when neighbours’ complaints against the young cricketer for shattering their windows with his ‘sixes’ had become the order of the day

Guntur celebrates
As soon as news spread, Guntur lit up with joy as friends and relatives burst firecrackers and distributed sweets. Several people, following Rasheed since his nascent stage, expressed happiness and  wished him luck.

source:http://www.newindianexpress.com / The New Indian Express / Home> States> Andhra Pradesh / by Bandhavi Annam / Express News Service / December 26th, 2022

IPL 2022: SRH pacer Umran Malik enthrals fans with another 150-kmph thunderbolt

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Jammu City, JAMMU & KASHMIR :

The young pace sensation from Jammu and Kashmir had sent down a 153-kmph delivery in the second leg of the IPL played in United Arab Emirates.

Sunrisers Hyderabad pacer Umran Malik. Credit: SunRisers Hyderabad/Twitter

Pune :

Umran Malik, the young pace sensation from Jammu and Kashmir, has done it again.

The 22-year-old Sunrisers Hyderabad pacer on Tuesday set the internet on fire by sending a 150-kmph delivery in the first over of his team’s IPL 2022 match against Rajasthan Royals at the Maharashtra Cricket Association Stadium, here.

And this is not the first time that the express pacer has clocked the 150-kmph on the speed gun in the IPL.

In the second leg of the IPL played in United Arab Emirates (UAE), Malik sent down a 153-kmph thunderbolt, the fastest delivery in IPL history, and had both his skipper Kane Williamson and the then India captain Virat Kohli gushing over the new speed demon of Indian cricket.

After seeing his ability to bowl with lightning speed, SRH gambled and retained him as their third player ahead of the IPL 2022 mega auction.

On Tuesday, that gamble seems to have paid as Malik was their best bowler against Rajasthan Royals, taking two wickets in his four overs spell giving away 39 runs.

Every time he jumps on the popping crease, he outdoes his pace. With his express pace, Malik got the wickets of Jos Buttler and Devdutt Padikkal.

The instant stardom, that he achieved in UAE last year and enhanced on Tuesday, is just a byproduct of his confidence that made him believe that he could make it to the India team at a very young age.

When he was 18, he wrote in his bio on his social media handle, “India Soon”. The pacer, whose father Abdul Rashid is a fruit-seller in Shaheedi Chowk in Jammu, was confident enough to predict that one day he will make it to the national side.  His dedication and perseverance paved the way into his state’s Under-19 squad.

A good performance in the Syed Mushtaq Ali Trophy T20 competition helped him make it to the Sunrisers Hyderabad team as a net bowler.

Malik was roped in as a short-term Covid-19 replacement for T Natarajan, who had tested positive for Covid virus ahead of Hyderabad’s encounter against Delhi Capitals on September 22, 2021. After that, Malik’s fortunes completely changed.

Malik, who was part of the Hyderabad contingent as a net bowler, has played eight T20 and one List A match for Jammu Kashmir and has picked a total of four wickets.

Hailing from a modest family in Jammu’s Gujjar Nagar, Malik began playing at a young age. His family has always supported his passion with his father, his mother and two older sisters always there for him.

In the game against Royal Challengers Bangalore in the 2021 IPL, Malik went a step further by bowling the second-fastest delivery of IPL — a 152.95kph thunderbolt that stunned everyone.

At the post-match presentation, RCB’s then skipper Virat Kohli spoke in support of the youngster, “Whenever you see talent like this, you are going to have your eyes on them and make sure you maximise their potential.” “I really felt proud on seeing such a big player talking about me,” Malik had said after the match.


His exploits resulted in him being asked to be part of the Indian senior team’s net bowlers for the T20 World Cup in the UAE last year.

By clocking 150-kmph again on Tuesday, Malik has proved that his exploits last year were not a flash in the pan. He has it in him to consistently hit the 150-mark on the speed gun.

Now he has to build on this brilliant start to fulfill his dream of making it to the Indian team.

–IANS

source: http://www.tribuneindia.com / The Tribune / Home> Sports / by IANS / Pune, March 29th, 2022

Shams Mulani: Never felt I was only a white-ball bowler

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Raigad, MAHARASHTRA :

Shams Mulani has silenced all his critics with his sterling performance in the Ranji Trophy.

FILE PHOTO: Mumbai bowler Shams Mulani during a Ranji Trophy match at the M. A. Chidambaram Stadium in Chennai.   –  THE HINDU ARCHIVES

He made his First Class debut in 2018-19. He was Mumbai’s highest wicket-taker in the Ranji Trophy the following season.

Still, Shams Mulani , the all-rounder, has always had to deal with murmurs of primarily being a white-ball bowler. Over the last fortnight, Mulani has silenced all his critics with his sterling performance bowling left-arm spin.

Mulani has picked a whopping 22 wickets in the first two league stages, including three consecutive five-wicket hauls. As a result, he is topping the wicket-takers’ chart in the Ranji Trophy. The southpaw, who is a couple of weeks shy of turning 25, hopes his performance versus Saurashtra and Goa should end the debate about spin-bowling skills in the longer format.

“I think it should because I never felt I was only a white-ball bowler. I feel that I am versatile and I can play all three formats pretty well as a bowler. That’s what I am trying to do,” Mulani told Sportstar on Monday, a day after being adjudged Player of the Match for his 11-wicket haul and a crucial 50 in Mumbai’s second essay.

“The tags are always going to be there, critics are always going to say something, you can’t help it. You just have to do what you do… let the ball and the bat do the talking.”

It was impressive to see Mulani using the width of the crease versus Goa, sensing the pitch at the Narendra Modi Stadium was offering turn from outside off-stump to right-handers. “I can say it’s a sense of maturity. Being around for a while, I have started reading the conditions better. The key to pick wickets is to assess the conditions, the batters and change your plan accordingly. I am glad it’s coming off,” he said.

Mulani stressed despite little red-ball cricket in the last two years, it’s his beginning at the Bengal Cricket Academy at Shivaji Park that meant he continued to work hard even while bowling with the red ball.

“Even when the whole focus was on limited overs (he was a Covid-replacement for Axar Patel in IPL 2021’s first half), I make it a point to carry at least one red-ball in my kit-bag all the time,” Mulani said. “That’s the basics. We started off bowling with it as kids and that’s what is going to hold us in good stead in the long-run.”

source: http://www.sportstar.thehindu.com / Sportstar / Home> Domestic / by Amol Karhadkar / Ahmedabad – February 28th, 2022

From a remote MP village to Mumbai Indians, journey of cricketer Arshad Khan

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Gopalganj Village (Seoni District), MADHYA PRADESH :

Arshad with his team. | Picture by arrangement

Bhopal :

Ashfaq Khan (63) and his wife Aliya Khan (56), residents of Seoni district of Madhya Pradesh’s Gopalganj, were glued to the television set watching the Indian Premier League (IPL) auction as the league had put his youngest son Arshad Khan’s name in the auction list of IPL players. With the completion of every auction, the duo eagerly waits to hear the next name which might be of their son’s.

With dim hope, Ashfaq, a retired teacher-turn-farmer, who wants to see his son in the Indian cricket team, left home for the mosque to offer evening Namaz (Magrib), pondering on the future of his son. As he completed the Namaz, his eldest son Zakariya Khan whispered, “Arsad ko Mumbai Indians team ne kharid liya hai. Wo IPL khele ga.” 

Elated with the news, “I thanked Allah and offered namaz of shukrana,” recalled Ashfaq.

The left-arm seamer and left-hand batsman, Mohd Arshad Khan has been picked up by Mumbai Indians worth Rs 20 lakh in the mega auction of the 15th season of IPL 2022 held in Bangalore recently. His consistent performance in the Under-23 VK Naidu tournament organised by BCCI in the year 2020, Vijay Hazare Trophy and Syed Mushtaq Ali Trophy in the same year caught the eyeballs of the selectors.  

In the VK Naidu tournament, Arshad took 36 wickets in 10 matches and also scored 400 runs. He shot into the limelight in 2019-20 when he took 5 wickets and scored a century, batting in the tail end. “The match was against Assam and my team had lost 7 wickets for 87 runs. I went in and scored 134 runs. That inning has been the best of my career,” said Arshad. He always punched above his weight, getting selected for under-14 when he was just 11-year-old.

It was an unforgettable moment for Ashfaq, who coached Arshad for almost eight years since he was eight-year-old. “He was born to be a cricketer. I saw a player in him when he performed well during a trial that took place in Chhindwara in 2008.”

With the selection in Mumbai Indians, Arshad became a superstar in his village as well as in the district. When an overwhelmed Ashfaq was rushing home, he was surrounded by the villagers who were rejoicing at Arshad’s selection. “It was like a village fair. Hundreds of people have gathered outside the home, crackers were burnt, drums have begun to beat and everyone is distributing sweets,” said Aliya, mother of Arshad. 

Recalling the contribution of Arshad’s father, his mother Aliya said, “Cricket is an expensive game and there were occasions when his father purchased his cricket kit way more expensive than his month’s salary. Besides, the efforts of his coaches Abdul Kalam, from Seoni and his coaches in Indore — Shantanu Tripathi and Chandrakant Pandit — have polished his talent to become a good cricketer.”

Belonging to a humble background and youngest among the four siblings, Arshad and his family live in Gopalganj village, around 13-km from Seoni town. “Even Seoni didn’t have a proper turf, what to talk of my village when I began playing cricket,” said Arshad speaking over the phone. “I was in Gujarat when I got a phone call that you have been selected for Mumbai Indians. 

“My phone was buzzing non-stop the day I got selected. I don’t even have time to speak with my father. It was the next morning when I spoke to him on a video call. He was blushing and smiling. It was an unforgettable smile which I have been waiting to see for years,” the budding cricketer Arshad giggled. 

Talking about the struggle, Arsad said, “From 2017 to 2019, it was the years of despair. I had multiple injuries and have stopped playing cricket. But then my father encouraged me to restart afresh and boosted my morale. From that day to today, I never looked back.”

“The journey would have been much more difficult if my partner-in-dream; Ashfaq Khan, my father, did not stand beside me like a rock,” said Ashfaq adding that I want to live his dream and will play for the Indian cricket squad.

Madness for cricket has forced Arshad to quit education after matriculation. But, now, he is determined to resume his studies.

Just like Arshad, Kuldeep Sen, a son of saloon shop owner from Madhya Pradesh’s Rewa, was also auctioned in the the15th edition of IPL. Rajasthan Royals took him at a base price of Rs 20 lakh. 

source: http://www.twocirlcles.net / TwoCircles.net / Home> Lead Story / by Kashif Kakvi, TwoCirlcles.net / Februrary 25th, 2022