When Mohammad Irfan made his debut in England, his hype was massive; his performances, not so much. In his 12-and-a-bit overs he went wicketless and at over six an over. Bowling at 130kph he seemed a far cry from the giant he was supposed to be; more an enlarged version of Darren Sammy rather than the second coming of Joel Garner. And thus, he was thrown on the scrap heap; another Pakistani gimmick never to be seen again.
Or so we thought.
In the Faysal Bank T20 in December 2012, however, he looked a dissimilar prospect to the one seen in England two years earlier; terrorising batsmen frequently. He took 11 wickets in 7 matches (tied third-highest in the tournament), and went at less than a run a ball. But that could have also been attributed to the quality of Pakistani batsmen. Never a nation comfortable with steep bounce, it was unclear whether it was Irfan who excelled or the batsman who just weren’t international class. On the back of this performance, though, he was selected for the India tour later that month. And there, he proved that those performances were actually earned. Making the “Best Batting Line-Up In The WorldTM” dance to the tune of his deliveries, scaring the daylights out of them. He may not have had the wickets to go with his performances, but his ability to push every batsman on the back foot and make them uncomfortable helped Junaid Khan get his hauls. The old adage about fast bowlers hunting in pairs came to mind, even if it was Junaid who was doing the killing.
Since then, he has been impressive without ever getting just rewards. Until yesterday, he had bowled 11 times in international cricket, only once taking more than two wickets (his three- wicket haul on debut in Newlands) in that time. Despite the fact that he was bowling upwards of 140kph, and providing the sort of angle and bounce that most batsman would be unfamiliar with, he was a supporting act to Junaid and Saeed Ajmal. That was until yesterday. Hurt by not being picked for the first ODI, as he was for the 1st Test, he swung the momentum of the series back towards Pakistan in one spell of hostile fast bowling. By the end of his sixth over he had taken four wickets and reduced South Africa to 62 for 5; leaving the Proteas needing a comeback of epic proportions to win the game. Pakistan, despite their subsequent lax middle-overs bowling, and customarily poor batting, were taken home by Misbah-ul-Haq eventually.
The change in Irfan seems obvious in hindsight. Talking to him, especially in front of the cameras, is to deal with someone who is more uncomfortable with the spotlight than a latter-day Howard Hughes. In press conferences, he does a rather good impression of a desi bride with his murmured answers and averted gaze. He’s someone who really does fit the stereotype of the gentle giant.
When I asked him about how he had changed since his debut, he revealed that it had been more about altering the mental side of the game rather than the technical. He gave credit to both his domestic and international coaches for making him realise that he has to develop an alter ego on the field – that of a typical ‘fast’ bowler; one who is angry and cruel. Others in the management staff talked about working long hours with him to develop his mind, his confidence and even the way he needs to stare at the batsmen; how he needs to be a mard on the field, a true fast bowler unaffected by lashing. That has perhaps been his greatest asset over the past four months. There have been some Pakistani fast bowlers who get depressed by being taken apart (Gul, Umar) while others who seem not to learn by being hit over and over again (Sami, Mohammad). When Irfan has been hit for a boundary or two, he comes back angrier and nastier. His reaction on the AB de Villiers wicket showed that this was the wicket he was most pleased with, he later revealed why – AB had hit him for a boundary the ball before. It is easy, however, to forget that he’s still young in cricketing years – having made his debut late, he’s getting used to bowling at this level. He has, after all, played fewer first-class games than Junaid, for example.
He may still be made of balsawood but as long as he’s available to Pakistan he must surely be a regular partner to Junaid. Misbah – frustrated by many other things within the camp – was pleased with how well Irfan had responded to the challenge. Pakistan, with only six recognised batsmen (two of whom average above 35 even), needed to bowl South Africa out of the game if they were to come back in the series. And, it was Irfan who made that rather risky strategy work.
