The entry of Irfan Pathan into the international cricket was meteoric. He made his Test debut at the age of 19 in Australia where he demonstrated his speed, swing and control. Within months he was in the ODI side of India and a regular in all formats including playing in India in their first T20I match against South Africa in 2006.
The Unexpected ODI Setback
Irfan took a turn in career in 2009. He had been previously dropped out of the Test side a year previously, and was suddenly dropped out of the ODI side after a series against Sri Lanka. It was a huge setback as he was not in a format which was more glamorous than T20s at that time.
Pathan remembered the role played by MS Dhoni in his omission: “I knew whose hands it fell in.” In 2009 we were in NZ. Before that, my brother (Yusuf Pathan) and I had won matches in Sri Lanka. This is when we had snatched a victory- had it been anyone but us, they would have been dropped a year.”
Revelations About Captaincy Decisions
Irfan has provided information about the perplexing time when he was marginalized. “In New Zealand, I was benched for the first match, the second match, and the third match as well. The fourth match was a draw because of rain. I wasn’t in the final match either. Then I asked Gary sir why I had been dropped. If there was something I needed to improve, he could tell me, but I wanted to know the reason I was left out.”
Two answers provided by Gary Kirsten, then head coach of India, made the situation clear. “Kirsten gave me two reasons. He said, ‘There are things that are not in my hand.’ Those were Gary’s exact words. I asked whose hands it was in, but he didn’t tell me. I already knew whose hands it was in. The playing XI is decided by the captain’s choice. The decision rests with the captain, coach, and management. Dhoni was the captain at that time. I won’t get into whether that decision was right or wrong, because every captain has the right to run the team in his own way.”
The All-Rounder Dilemma
Pathan also talked about the composition of the team which played a role in him being left out. “The second answer was that they were looking for a batting all-rounder at No. 7. Fair enough – my brother was a batting all-rounder, while I was a bowling all-rounder. The two were different from each other, but there was only room for one in the team. Nowadays, if you ask whether two all-rounders are needed, people would gladly take both.”
Returning in 2012, Irfan went on to play another 12 ODIs before his international career was ended in silence, when he retired in 2020. It took five years and he finally told the inside story of what it felt like to be sidelined after being so successful in the beginning and gave the fans a peek through the tough decisions being made in the leadership of Indian cricket.
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