‘From here on I have to work doubly hard’

On Amit Mishra’s debut, it was Anil Kumble who took him aside and made him feel at ease… Now he has big shoes to fill

MUMBAI: Till just the other day Amit Mishra would roam around and nobody would give him a second look. Over the past few days he is getting curious glances from people and ‘I know you’ kind of smiles as he moves around New Delhi. Fourteen wickets in three Tests against Australia made him famous. 

The capital city hasn’t always lent itself to happy memories for Mishra. Nine years ago, as a promising under-19 player from Delhi, Mishra faced the disappointment of being overlooked. It’s been chronicled that pulling a few strings in Delhi cricket circles can facilitate mediocre players to make the cut over steady performers. Mishra packed his bags and headed for Haryana. He was frustrated.

He didn’t disappoint. Mishra went from strength to strength and played in the India under-19 teams, India A squads. A year after he switched loyalties, Mishra played Ranji Trophy for Haryana.

Forty-six wickets in the 2007-08 first class season and a hat-trick for the Delhi Daredevils against the Deccan Chargers in an IPL game made everyone sit up and take notice of Mishra again. “There were times when I was really frustrated. Wanting to play for India is one thing but not everyone gets a break even after working hard. So I wondered when my time would come. It isn’t easy when you aren’t picked for nearly six years after first getting a chance to play for India (in 2003 in ODIs),” Mishra told DNA.

His family advised him to be patient. Mishra’s father worked in the railways and it wasn’t easy looking after a large family. It helped that his elder brother Ajay was an eager cricketer. Mishra can’t thank Ranbir Singh Mahendra enough. Mahendra, the secretary of the Haryana Cricket Association backed Mishra through thick and thin.
Sanjay Bharadwaj cajoled Mishra to make the switch to Haryana. Mishra was one of the five boys who made their way from the neighbourhood Railway Colony to Bharadwaj’s academy in Ashok Vihar that day.

Bharadwaj remembers Gautam Gambhir and Mishra as enthusiastic youngsters. However, Mishra loved batting. Gambhir was keen on bowling leg-spin. “I had to drill it into Gautam and Mishra that they were not going anywhere if they didn’t focus on their strengths. Gautam would bowl spin and Mishra would bat. However, I made it clear that unless they switched roles they would never play for India. Initially, it was difficult to stop Mishra from batting and he would often complain that I was not paying enough attention to his batting,” Bharadwaj said.

Mishra was disciplined, well-mannered and polite, Bharadwaj recalled. “He hasn’t changed one bit. Mishra never modeled himself on anyone, but I remember that he wanted to be like Anil Kumble,” the coach said. Before Mishra went out to make his debut, it was Kumble who took him aside and made him feel at ease.

“Anil bhai told me to bowl to the Australians like I would in a Ranji Trophy game. He told me to stick to my game and not get overwhelmed by the big names in the opposition,” Mishra said.

With Kumble gone, Mishra knows he faces a Herculean task. “It will be impossible to fill the slots left vacant by the retirement of Sourav Ganguly and Anil bhai. If I can be half the player Anil bhai was it will be an achievement for me,” Mishra said.  “I know there will be immense pressure on me to perform now.

The selectors will be closely watching my performance and the expectations from the fans and the media will be very high now. I know, I can’t afford to fail,” he added. But Mishra isn’t getting worked-up.  “I have worked it out. From here on I have to work doubly hard to figure out the weakness of batsmen and worked doubly hard to iron out my weaknesses. It’s as simple as that. The rest of the things will fall into place.”