Out of favour Indian pacer, Irfan Pathan is not going through the best times in his career, but he is never shy from offering a smile. The all-rounder was left out of the Baroda Ranji Trophy team despite being the skipper at the beginning of the season. Since his performance was decent, it is speculated that his ouster was mainly due to some internal conflict with the Baroda Cricket Association (BCA). Irfan has remained mum over the topic though.
He was recently seen answering various questions thrown at him by his fans. He was asked to choose the best batsman he has bowled to and the most favourite moment in his career. He expressed delight and said that he was lucky to have played with some of the legends of the game like Sachin Tendulkar and VVS Laxman.
“I have to say that I’m very lucky to have played alongside two batsmen, VVS Laxman and Sachin Tendulkar. I had to bowl them in the nets and they were the best,” Irfan was quoted as saying by the ESPN Cricinfo.
Irfan further stated that as opponents former Pakistan skipper Inzamam-ul-Haq and former Australian wicket-keeper who redefined the role of a wicket-keeper in limited overs, Adam Gilchrist was the most difficult batsmen to bowl at.
“Talking about internationally, I feel Adam Gilchrist and Inzamam-ul-Haq were the toughest to bowl to. Especially Gilchrist, he could hit you for a pull shot, he could loft you, the margin of error was quite small. Even Inzy was difficult to bowl to,” Irfan added.
A fan asked Irfan to pick his favourite moment from the famous first over hat-trick against Pakistan and winning the Man of the Match Award in the final of the 2007 World Twenty20. Pathan reckoned that his Man of the Match winning performance in the 2007 World Twenty20 Final slightly held the edge.
“Well that’s a difficult question, but it was really fun bowling the hattrick. Any performance that helps to contribute in winning is memorable. So at the end of the day, you want your team to win. Hence, WT20 performance gave me more satisfaction,” he said.
When asked which feat he will tell his kids first Irfan jokingly replied:
“If he’s a genuine cricket lover, then the hat-trick, if not, then WT20.”