KOCHI: Asif KM was a good football player during his school days and had won several laurels plying the trade in the district and state levels. He was quick on his feet, but little did he know that football will only serve as a pass to the world of sports. The rest of the journey he had to piggyback on cricket. When Asif had to show a certificate to back up his claim for an admission in the G V Raja Sports School for cricket training, football came to his help. For the last time, maybe. Thereafter it was all cricket.
Malappuram native stopped chasing the ‘pigskin’. Instead, he began darting the cherry. On Sunday, the 24-year-old from Malappuram received a good news from Bengaluru. He was picked up by Chennai Super Kings for Rs 40 lakh in the player auction.
“I was a good football player and slowly I began bowling quick,” his voice was laced with mischief and excitement. “Though in Malappuram, football is the most passionately followed game, in my locality near Nilambur cricket was equally encouraged. I started bowling there with a tennis ball and later after securing admission to G V Raja for cricket training- that too backed by a football certificate- I picked up the nuances of the art,” he said.
Currently training under Glenn McGrath at the MRF Pace Foundation in Chennai, Asif said it was his speed that caught the attention of the selectors. One who had impressed the likes of Australian pace legend Jeff Thompson and coach Dave Whatmore with his explosiveness and speed, Asif knows what the team expects from him.
“I was roped in for my pace, for my slower ones and my yorkers,” he said. One who could clock 140kmph and more, Asif believes it was his speed that brought him this far. “I am not going to curtail my pace. McGrath also told me the same,” he felt.
Like Asif, MD Nidheesh is also a pace addict. A fanatic faithful of the dreadful art that could affright the batters. Having had a good Ranji Trophy season pass by, Nidheesh was hoping to make it count in the limited overs also. But an injury which he had picked up during the Mumbai Indian selection trials made him skip the remaining events. However, the three overs he had sent down during the trials before getting hurt was enough to convince the Mumbai selectors. He took one wicket and most importantly, conceded only a boundary. “Conceding only a boundary was the key,” said the Ernakulam native.
Recovering under former India pacer S Sreesanth, Nidheesh believed that cutting down pace is a sacrilege. “What’s more, Sreesanth and Tinu Yohannan have told me not to forego speed for anything else. I thrive on pace and they know that,” said the 26-year-old.
Midhun, who was drafted in by the Rajasthan Royals, got his due for being street smart. Tennis ball and leg spin are as connected as bicycle and fish. But Midhun made it sure he turned the ball as much as he wanted. And his switch to leather ball came without much trouble.
“Bowling leg spin with a tennis ball is a tough task. Having done that earlier, it was easy for Midhun to do the same with the cricket ball. Given his experience in dealing hard-hitters in street cricket, I feel Midhun can play a good role for his side in the IPL,” observed his coach Santosh Karunakaran.The trio, hailing from a humble background and making their IPL debut, reckon on the other side of a successful IPL sojourn lies stardom. And they also know only too well just one bad outing can end it all.
Even though in Malappuram, football is the most passionately followed game, in my locality near Nilambur, cricket was equally encouraged. I started bowling there with a tennis ball and later after securing admission to G V Raja for cricket training- that too backed by a football certificate- I picked up the nuances of the art - Asif K M, cricketer