Tags:
Journalism of Courage
When the Pakistan Cricket Board named on Thursday its squad for the camp to prepare for England8217;s upcoming visit, one man stood out: Mohammed Shafiq. At six-foot-six he towers over his teammates but Shafiq is more than curiosity value: He8217;s the winner of a nationwide speed hunt and drafted in specifically to simulate Steve Harmison at full tilt.
Which immediately prompted the question: Whatever happened to India8217;s speed-hunt winners? Well, we tracked down NC Aiyappa, who won the first national speed contest two years ago yet who isn8217;t a familiar name to even cricket8217;s train spotters. And though he8217;s very much on the fringes of stardom, he8217;s only 8212; as Sree Santh would testify 8212; one good-length ball away from it.
Two years later, at 25, he8217;s a member of the Karnataka Ranji Trophy and South Zone Deodhar Trophy teams.
So how, we ask him, has winning the speed contest changed his life? 8216;8216;Well8217;8217;, he says with a half-smile, 8216;8216;do you think you8217;d have approached me for an interview?8217;8217;
Then he turns serious. 8216;8216;I8217;m happy with everything I got. Rs 75,000 as prize, a trip to Brisbane and training with Aussie fast bowler Damien Fleming. And when I returned, I was bowling at 140kph.8217;8217;
His life was on the fast track even before that. Till the age of 18, he was a goalkeeper for his school team. 8216;8216;I was athletic and took to football. It was only in college that I took up cricket. I started as an all-rounder but suddenly I realised that I could bowl really fast. I started taking wickets and one thing led to another,8217;8217; he says.
Since winning the Speedster crown he8217;s played 11 first class games and taken 43 wickets; that includes four Ranji Trophy matches last season, where he took 18 wickets.
8216;8216;I8217;ve learnt a lot since then8217;8217;, NC says. 8216;8216;One needs more than figures on the speed counter to be a Shoaib Akhtar or a Brett Lee. Fast bowling isn8217;t all about speed. It is about the movement, the line and length.8217;8217;
There8217;s a long way to go before he can chuck up his Canara Bank job and make cricket pay his bills. He8217;s aware of that, and of the fact that time is against him, but refuses to give up his optimism.
Any dreams ? 8216;8216;To be the fastest ever,8217;8217; he jokes or does he?. The cheek of the reply, and another flash of that smile, reminds one of Shoaib Akhtar. It8217;s true; fast bowlers have a way about themselves.
