Mr Boots: Multan’s reply to all bowling questions

Catering to specific demands of batsmen is his speciality, and after his reputation spread, Fayyaz says, ‘‘Graham Thorpe was one of the first batsmen to come over to me when England came here in 2000. Craig McMillan also came over and requested for the meat to be transferred to the lower end, because he wanted to counter Wasim and Waqar’s yorkers.’’

But being a new-ball bowler as a youngster — for Multan — Fayyaz wanted to concentrate on fast bowlers, and chose to shift his attention to their feet. He set up Monty Sports in 1984, and since then there has been no looking back. His clientele today boasts of names like Chaminda Vaas, Nuwan Zoysa, Andy Caddick, and of course, Shoaib Akhtar, Waqar Younis, et al. Fayyaz has treated them all with his hand-made boots. ‘‘On the hard surfaces in Australia you need lesser nails, whereas in England’s soft tracks you can afford to have more nails,’’ he explains the basics.

So it was no surprise when Irfan looked him up when on tour with the Indian Under-19 team in September 2003 and requested for help. ‘‘I told him that with the A6 boots he was wearing, there was a chance of slipping and injuring himself. I offered him new shoes free of cost, but he did not wear it right then. He used it when he went back to India and later in Australia,’’ Fayyaz recalls. And Irfan has since added Zaheer Khan and Balaji’s names to Fayyaz’s hitlist.

For Fayyaz, there is a boot for every season, every surface and every foot. He explains enthusiastically how Zaheer Khan has two different measurements for his right and left feet. ‘‘The left is very broad, whereas the right one is slimmer. Also Zaheer is flat-footed. As a result, earlier all the weight of his landing would fall on his right foot. So I have specifically put in different spikes — six under the sole of his right foot — and he shouldn’t have the problem anymore.’’

And just by the way, while a newly-made Monty Sports boot would cost you Rs 7,500, the Indian fast bowlers are getting it free of cost. All the more reason to make a beeline for Fayyaz. ‘‘You are our guest. How can we charge you?’’ is the explanation for this. His newest client is Ajit Agarkar and before the start of the Lahore Test, Fayyaz got an opportunity to meet Agarkar in his hotel room and draw a sketch of the foot — the first step towards making such specific boots.

To go back to the boots, Fayyaz explains the science of it all, saying, ‘‘The basic reason is that the back too should not feel a strain. I did the same for Shoaib Akhtar and Waqar Younis. Shoaib brought his boots to me and I helped him with the sole and padding. Also, since Waqar started using my shoes in 2000 he never missed a match because of a back injury.’’

Waqar, by the way, is a topic close to Fayyaz’s heart, because there was a time, many years ago, when the two were new ball partners for the Multan Division side, of which our boot specialist was the captain. This was in 1990, and a young man named Inzamam-ul Haq was just starting to find his feet in the game. Also in Multan. But that, as they say, is another story.

Also to the credit of Fayyaz are the specifically-designed nets at the Pakistan National Cricket Academy (NCA). The indoor nets, especially, have been made in such a way that it expands when it is hot and contracts when it is cold. Quite an innovation, especially in these parts of the world where the weather plays such an important role.

Clearly, Fayyaz is a man who’s found a niche not many ex-cricketers would have given a though to, caught up in these days of lucrative post-career contracts in the media and such-like spheres. And with his ‘patients’ making such massive strides, it’s definitely paying him dividends.