Afridi and Adam, tale of contrasts

Adam Gilchrist has hit a phenomenal 100 sixers in Test cricket in the course of his blazing half-century against Sri Lanka the other day.

I suspect, this must cause some remorse in Shahid Afridi, Pakistan’s big hitting all-rounder, as he sat out the last one-day game at Jaipur, wondering where his career was headed, for he now heads back home after losing his place in the Test squad.

Afridi arrived on the international arena 12 years ago as a precocious teenager destined for great things.

He was a clean, powerful, stupendous hitter who could intimidate the best attacks, and change the course of a match within overs.

Gilchrist, who came in a few years later, held much the same promise. Today, Gilchrist is recognized as one of the all-time greats, while Afridi is discussed in the perspective of what might have been.

It is not my argument that Gilchrist and Afridi are equally good batsmen, but it is my argument that both were gifted when they started.

One actualized his potential, the other squandered it. One went from strength to strength, the other made his strength his weakness.

And I say this allowing for the fact that Gilchrist has had the benefit of playing for the best team in the world.

International sport can be as cruel as it is rewarding. Only the most committed, the most passionate and — most importantly — the most common-sensical can survive for a long tenure.

True, Afridi, when he gets going, remains an exhilarating sight and will win matches. But how often does that happen? Does he have enough fuel in the tank to rewrite his cricketing destiny, I wonder.

Meanwhile, Gilchrist is the batsman to celebrate. His six-hitting landmark puts him some notches ahead of big hitters like Sir Gary Sobers, Viv Richards, Clive Lloyd, Ian Botham, Kapil Dev, Matt Hayden, Tendulkar, Lara et al which is no mean achievement even allowing for the fact that Gilchrist frequently bats at No. 7, and in that sense, has less of a reputation to protect than a front-liner.

A hit for six is arguably the most exciting sight in cricket, though fast bowlers who knock back stumps might have a case going for them.

Even so, a sixer remains the most blatant show of aggression on a cricket field. It puts the fielding side on the defensive and it sets the adrenalin pumping in the spectators, which is why six-hitters are the perennial crowd favourites.

In the Indian context, Salim Durrani, Kapil Dev, and now Yuvraj Singh and MS Dhoni have achieved iconic status precisely because of this prowess.

Of course, mere six-hitting does not make for a great batsman, as Afridi will readily testify.

Cricketing greatness, ultimately, lies in consistency. No wonder, Gilchrist, despite his free-stroking approach, averages almost 50 after a decade. Add to that his catches and stumpings and the picture is complete.

It is worth remembering that Sir Don Bradman, the greatest batsmen ever, hit only six sixes while scoring 6,996 runs in 70 innings.