Days after father’s brain-stroke, months after shoulder injury, Mohsin Khan emerges a hero

A few months ago, he had little hopes of playing the game again, leave alone putting on a star act in the IPL. This was after a shoulder injury for which he had to undergo surgery last October. “It was quite strange, my artery was blocked, my nerve was blocked. The doctor had said if I were late by another month they would have had to amputate my hand. I was not able to straighten [my hand] and it was quite scary,” he recollected the dark times of his life.

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At one stage, he even deliberated quitting the game. “It was a very tough time and I had given up hope of playing cricket at one point because I was not able to even lift my hand, forget bowling,” he said.

Words of strength

That is when his coach Mohammed Badruddin—the mentor of Mohammed Shami too—wrapped an arm of comfort around him.

He had just one piece of advice to him. “Don’t stay alone.” “I told him that he can come to the ground or be with friends. Staying alone and doing nothing is the most challenging task for any cricketer. It’s where all negative thoughts start building one,” Badruddin said.

At that time, Khan was worried about two aspects of his game and life —if he can bowl with the same speed again and if his body will respond to treatment early. “One day he told me sir, the doctor told me that I will be ready to play in six months. I said take eight months as the body will take some time to respond. He was scared but it’s important to tell them that you will be back again and bowl with the same speed. Players want to come to the ground and are in a hurry to play,” he said.

Mohsin Khan celebrates bagging a wicket for Lucknow Super Giants during IPL 2022. (PTI)

“Bowling after surgery is most difficult but he did well. I still feel, had he not gotten injured last year, he would have played for India,” the coach added.

But Khan made rapid recovery, and though he missed the entire first half of the IPL, he was handed a break against Gujarat Titans. The morning of the game, he called his coach. The conversation was different. The coach told him that God has given him a second chance and he should make the most of it.

His return was cruel. Titans plundered him for 42 runs in three overs. Against Mumbai, he bled 21 runs in his first two overs too. But he did not surrender. Then in the most testing hour of his life, he resorted to the basics and trust his instincts. “I was just trying to do what I do in practice. That’s my strength. I just followed that. Krunal bhai also came and asked me what I was going to do. I told him, ‘bhaiya, I will do what I have been doing so far’,” he said.

Needless to say, it worked beautifully. He began with an off-cutter to Green. He bunted it straight back at him. A quicker length-ball followed. Green was compressed for room to go big. But the single brought Tim David on strike. But he remained unfazed.

Aware of David’s leg-side proficiency, he bowled a full ball, slanting away outside the off-stump. David managed just a single. Then he bowled two perfect yorkers that yielded just a run for Green. The match thus was effectively won, and Mohsin stretched his arms in joy. After the last ball, he vented out months of pent-up frustrations in wild celebrations. And he dedicated the performance to his father.