Then, in the new millennium, burst upon the scene Irfan Pathan and after showing his bowling prowess he developed his batting and starting emerging as the answer to our prayers for a genuine all rounder. Going in lower down the order the aggressive left hander played a number of valuable knocks besides being a swing bowler who could make the ball talk.
The accolades came thick and fast. The brightest among the new gems unearthed by India. The most promising all-round prospect since Kapil Dev. The most hostile left arm pace bowler in the history of Indian cricket. He has it in him to become another Wasim Akram. The critics and the experts fell over each other in their praise of Pathan. Such accolades can turn a young man's head but Pathan kept his feat firmly planted on Mother Earth and was for some time the most talked about young cricketer in the land.
Greg Chappell, however, had other ideas for Pathan. Shortly after taking over as coach he virtually ruined his career by promoting him up the order. This led to Pathan concentrating more on his batting with the result that his bowling fell off. Finally, he not only lost his place in the Test team but in the limited overs side as well. The ultimate humiliation for Pathan was being sent back from a tour of South Africa in 2006 to concentrate on domestic cricket.
Since then, Pathan has been in and out of the Indian side both in Tests and limited overs cricket, thanks to injuries and the increasing competition from a number of young new ball bowlers. But his superior batting gives him a distinct edge and his Test record of 1105 runs and exactly 100 wickets from 29 matches underlines his all round skills. It must not be forgotten that as recent as 2008, he played a major role in India winning the Perth Test against Australia with scores of 28 and 46 a haul of five wickets winning the man of the match award.
Being a utility or bits and pieces player in limited overs cricket is one thing; being a genuine all-rounder in Test cricket quite another. Sending down a few overs in ODIs or Twenty20 is not the same as bowling 30 overs in a Test match.
Among the half a dozen contenders for the opening bowler's slot in the traditional format of the game, Pathan has the best batting credentials. All he needs is the backing of the selectors. Being continuously overlooked has not discouraged the doughty cricketer. It has, on the contrary, made him all the more determined to make a comeback and he is confident of donning the India cap again soon.
Critics point to his loss of pace being the chief reason for his decline. But in his defence, Pathan says that he was never a bowler who could bowl at 140 kmph or thereabouts. "I don't know what people are expecting from me. Do they want to see me to bowl at 140-plus and take no wickets? Or do they want to see me swing my way to wickets and give away fewer runs?'' he asked in a recent interview. In the meantime he is working hard on his fitness.
Age is very much on Pathan's side as he is still only 25. He has it in him to regain the old magic that brought him first into the limelight during the tour of Australia in 2003-04, when he was hailed as the potential all rounder the Indian cricket fan had been fervently praying for.
He certainly has got the credentials – a Test century, a hat trick in the first over of a Test match (only the second Indian bowler to achieve the feat), a bag of 21 wickets in two Tests equaling a famous record set by the legendary John Briggs for England against South Africa in 1888-89.
Now, if only he can gain the confidence of the selectors for besides his obvious skills in the shorter versions of the game, he is the ideal candidate for filling in the all-rounder's slot in the Test team. He is still the best bet; there is simply no other contender.
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