‘I am a bowler who can also bat. I am not an all-rounder yet’

In three matches, where he bowled 109 overs, Pathan picked up 15 wickets at an average of 23.6 and an economy rate of 3.86. Baroda are out of the Ranji Trophy, but Pathan, after the lay-off from international cricket, is now back in the Indian team.

He will play his first comeback game in Vadodara, his home town, and given the brief rest he’s had in the last one month, Pathan says he’s looking forward to the return like never before. Excerpts:

Is it the best thing to happen, now that you’re starting fresh at home?

Starting from home is always good. I’ve played a lot of my cricket here (in Baroda). Everything happens with a reason and therefore, I feel, my coming back here, spending a month or so and then returning to the team, afresh, is good. I have worked very hard during this time and have also, undoubtedly, felt at home. The Ranji matches gave me the required rest as well as some good bowling practice. I am upbeat about the way things have gone and am looking forward to my next game.

How have the last couple of months been for you?

Honestly, not playing for India hurts. But I should add here that I really enjoyed playing for Baroda and that’s always been the case for me. Cricket aside, coming back home and getting to spend time with my parents, my brother, sister and close friends was the best thing to happen. Staying at home, eating food with my family the way we usually do, driving through the lanes of Baroda, catching up with friends, I enjoyed all that. When you are on a tour, you’re usually in a hotel, mostly alone and that is always very different. So being at home was a welcome change. I was just very relaxed and wasn’t thinking too much about cricket.

From 2003 till now, which is that one time when you’ve had the opportunity to take a back seat, review your own performance, spend time for yourself, and stay relaxed?

After the 2004 tour of Pakistan, we got a two-month break, but after that it’s been really busy. We were continuously touring or playing at home during that period. I got a month off during our tour of Bangladesh before Pakistan were to arrive in India. But that was because I was injured. I spent that month in Mumbai with the physio, trying to get fit in time. I can easily say that during that phase, it was work and just work 365 days a year. More than reviewing my performance, I’d like to say, this one month’s rest has done me a world of good. It gave me the time to stay alone, sit and think for myself. On a tour, or probably during a series, you don’t always get the opportunity to do that.

You’ve been in the news quite a few times lately and mostly for reasons that have to do with your bowling. How did you cope with it?

Honestly I like to keep away from the media. I don’t read newspapers in detail and, frankly, restrain myself from watching news channels. So, thankfully, I didn’t go much into all that. I don’t try to read too much into what is being said about me, whether it is positive and negative. But I do like to see my photographs in the newspapers all the time and even if I’m watching myself on television, I like to keep it mute and just look at my own performance.

From the average cricket fan in the country to, let’s say, the most qualified men in the game, everybody seems to have an opinion on what’s happening to your game. So do you keep getting loads of advice? How do you decide what to take and what not?

I am a very good listener. Over time I have learnt to do that. So I listen to what everybody has to say. Cricket can be a funny game because if you’re doing well then what to get to hear is completely different from what you get to hear when you’re low on form. And such things can happen overnight.

I try to listen to everybody and respect the advice, keep what I think is good for me and chuck the rest. We’re an emotional bunch of people so the reactions are fast and fleeting. It’s like good form and bad form that comes and keeps going so I try not to worry too much about it.

In recent times, you’ve not been at your best with the ball. How much does it worry you? The wickets are there but you’ve been way too expensive and the swing seems to be taking a rest.

To be honest, the last eight-odd one-dayers have been a tough time for me. Sometimes you do well, sometimes you miss out but isn’t that how cricket is? There are a lot of expectations and sometimes you’re able to fulfil it better than times when it doesn’t work. Irfan Pathan is supposed to take early wickets, fine. But sometimes it doesn’t happen that way. There are so many things that go hand in hand with bowling.

Okay, there’s good form and bad form but one even has to consider that on that particular day, the batsman can be in smashing form, fielding might not be up to the mark, catches could be dropped, some decisions might go against you, the conditions might not be supporting. Unfortunately, plain statistics do not reflect all these things. I accept that I’ve been a little more expensive in recent times but again, I think a lot was made about that. I thought I did well against England and wicket-wise, the numbers still haven’t dropped drastically.

You always tried to make sure that you’re not tagged an all-rounder. There was a time when your batting and bowling, both, were at its peak and there was pressure growing on you to accept that you’re the next Kapil Dev in the making. What was your take then and how do you see it now?

I have never said that I don’t want to be known as an all-rounder. I want to be one, and a good one at that. But reaching there takes time. In hindsight, when I used to be asked the question time and again whether I considered myself an all-rounder, I felt more like it was a burden being put on me, some unnecessary pressure, which I didn’t need at that time. All I said was to give me some time. Bowling has always been my first love but I also know what my batting abilities are. In a team of eleven players, if a player has the knack of contributing with, both, the bat and the ball, it is obviously a plus point. That is what the team management tries to look at, to make that extra option possible.

If your team has an all-rounder, it is a good thing and the captain has the choice here of playing an extra batsman or an extra bowler depending on the circumstances. In fact, I want to put across one question to the media: If they want to call me an all-rounder, then why are they not happy when I perform with the bat? Sometimes you fail with the ball but compensate with the bat and vice-versa. But isn’t it what an all-rounder does? Then why is it that it always my bowling and never my batting that I am credited for? I think it’s just a negative way of looking at things.

Sometimes you can get a five-wicket haul and sometimes a half-century, but what is your priority on a given day, bowling or batting? How do you prepare for a match?

I would like to say that I am a bowler who can also bat. I am not an all-rounder yet. Sometimes I will do well with the bat and sometimes with the ball and I can only say that things are getting better. But let me say this, when I prepare for a match, bowling is my first priority. In fact, I don’t even think too much about my batting till the time I’ve padded up and walked out into the middle. Instead, when I prepare for a match, I try to concentrate on my bowling, my rhythm and everything else.

Especially in Tests, your captain is looking forward to taking wickets because that is eventually what wins you the game and I always remain focused on that. I love bowling, taking wickets and the thrill that comes with it. Batting is something that happens after I’ve bowled or before I’m supposed to. But, it’s always the second thing.

Whenever you have questions about your bowling or want some advice, who do you go to?

The first couple of people I like to turn to are coach Greg Chappell and Ian Frazer. Then of course, there are seniors in the team like Zaheer who I keep talking to. As far as a bowling coach is concerned, that’s not for me to say. It is up to the team management and the board. But I get a lot of help within the team from time to time.

Can you tell us about the preparations for the World Cup?

I am not thinking about that yet. Right now, I only want to take it match-by-match. There are a few matches to go and I could only speak about the World Cup when the time is right.