Want to Hit Sixes Like MS Dhoni, Says Manzoor Dar — Only Kashmiri in IPL

Agencies
January 30, 2018

New Delhi, Jan 30: From working as a labourer on a daily wage of Rs 60 to fetching an IPL contract worth Rs 20 lakh. Jammu and Kashmir batsman Manzoor Dar has covered a distance more awe-inspiring than the 100-metre sixes he is known for.

Considering the hardships he has faced, the IPL contract with Kings XI Punjab is a life-changing moment for the big-hitting Dar, who finally foresees better times for him and his large family living in a nondescript village in Bandipora district.

Many were made overnight millionaires but if there was one happy story emerging for the IPL auction last weekend, it was Dar. The burly batsman, who earned a name for hitting 100 metre sixes, was the last player to be bought by Kings XI Punjab.

"I am really thankful to god for this opportunity, also KXIP and Preity (Zinta) mam. My life has been full of struggle and when I finally found a team (at auction), I thought about the time I used to earn Rs 60 in the village as a daily labourer," Dar told PTI from Jammu where he is preparing for the state team trials for the Vijay Hazare Trophy next month.

Being the only player from Jammu and Kashmir to be picked in the IPL was a big deal not only for his small village but for the entire state.

"I spoke to my mother a short while ago. She told me some 30,000 people came to my house to congratulate. It is really moving to receive such love," he said.

Dar was a natural when it came to hitting huge sixes. He was looking for ways to make money to take care of his younger siblings, four sisters and three brothers, and one day he was told by his local coach to ply his trade in club cricket.

He found instant recognition there but juggling between the night job of a security guard and playing the next morning was not easy.

"But it was the only way I could keep playing. I worked as a night guard from 2008 to 2012 but it was also the time I made my name in club cricket. The aim was to play as many matches as possible because it meant more money. I clearly remember I did not have shoes or cricket gear when I played my first club game," he recalled.

"It was not until 2011 when I started thinking that cricket could be a long-term career option. That was the first time I gave trials for the state team but could only make my domestic debut in 2017," said Dar, who has nine T20s and four List A games since his maiden state appearance in January last year.

He is mainly known as 'Pandav' in cricketing circles but that is not just because of his big-hitting prowess.

"I was in seventh grade and we were playing a zonal kabaddi match. Five points were needed and I raided into the opposition area and dragged three players to my side. Since then they started calling me Pandav. The entire valley knows me by this name only."

Jammu and Kashmir's Parveez Rasool, who has also played for India, went unsold in the auction and Dar was only the second last player to go under the hammer in the two-day event.

He was hopeful of getting a team last year but when Rajasthan Royals called him for trials this time, he became more confident about his chances. Only two weeks ago, Dar was playing against his hero Yuvraj Singh in a domestic T20 event in Delhi, but never thought they both could be teammates. Yuvraj too will be representing KXIP this season.

"It will be huge to play alongside him. The others in the game whom I look up to are Kapil Dev and MS Dhoni. I always wanted to hit sixes like Dhoni," he gushed.

Rs 20 lakh may not be a huge amount for modern-day cricketers but for Dar, it is the beginning of a better life.

"I have been building the house back home for the past three years. It still doesn't have doors and windows but hopefully I would be able to get the work done now. I will also use the money for the treatment of my ailing mother," said Dar.

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Agencies
June 7,2020

Mumbai, Jun 7: The Mumbai airport became home for a 23-year-old Ghanaian footballer for 74 days after he got stranded there due to the coronavirus-induced lockdown that led to cancellation of flights.

The ordeal of Randy Juan Muller reminded people of Tom Hank's character in the Hollywood film "The Terminal", and it ended after Yuva Sena, the youth wing of the Shiv Sena, reached out to help him.

Muller has now shifted to a local hotel and is waiting for airlines to resume operations so that he can fly home.

The Mumbai International Airport Ltd (MIAL) also provided him all help, including food, and allowed him to use the airport WiFi network to make calls, an official said.

Muller, a Ghana national who used to play for a club in Kerala, was scheduled to fly home by Kenya Airways flight when the lockdown was announced and he found himself stranded at the Mumbai airport.

"He would spend his time at the airport's fancy artificial gardens and somehow buy food from stalls and pass his time with the airport staff. Muller told me the airport staff was very helpful," Yuva Sena office-bearer Rahul Kanal said.

A security officer at the airport gave him mobile phone to call his family back home.

A Twitter user brought Muller's plight to the notice of Maharashtra Tourism Minister Aaditya Thackeray following which Kanal reached out to the footballer and helped him move into a hotel.

On Saturday, Muller thanked Thackeray and Kanal for their help.

"Thank you Aaditya Thackeray, Rahul Kanal. Thank you very very so much. I appreciate what you have done. Salute," he said.

Kanal in a tweet said when he met Muller at the airport, the latter cried with happiness.

"Have no words to salute his willpower and fight for survival in such circumstances at this age," Kanal said.

An official at the Mumbai International Airport Ltd said the footballer was provided all help.

"All personnel at the airport, including from MIAL and CISF, gave him every possible help during his stay at the airport. Besides food, he was also allowed to use the airport WiFi network to make calls. Airport staff would recharge his phone at their own expense," the official said.

The 2004 film "Terminal" of Steven Spielberg was about a man stranded at a US airport after being denied entry into the country and a military coup back home.

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News Network
February 24,2020

Feb 24: India captain Virat Kohli had no qualms in admitting that his team was outplayed by New Zealand in the opening Test but said they "can't help" if a few want to make a "big deal" out of the 10-wicket defeat. Hosts New Zealand thrashed India by 10 wickets at the Basin Reverse on Monday to go 1-0 ahead in the two-match series. This was India's first defeat in the World Test Championship, coming after two inept batting efforts. "We know we haven't played well but if people want to make a big deal out of it, make a mountain out of it, we can't help it as we don't think like that," the skipper said at the post-match media interaction.

Kohli said he fails to comprehend why one Test match defeat should be made to look like the end of the world for his team.

"For some people, it might be the end of the world but it's not. For us, it's a game of cricket that we lost and we move on and keep our heads high," Kohli said.

It is the acceptance of defeat that defines the character of a side, the world's premier batsman said.

"We understand that we need to play well to win, also at home. There's no cakewalk at international level as teams will come and beat you. You accept it and that defines our character as a side."

It is the acceptance of defeat that defines the character of a side, the world's premier batsman said. "We understand that we need to play well to win, also at home. There's no cakewalk at international level as teams will come and beat you. You accept it and that defines our character as a side."

If he had given credence to the "outside chatter", he said the team wouldn't have been where it is now.

"That's why we have been able to play this kind of cricket. If we would have paid attention to the outside chatter, we would again be at No. 7 or 8 in the rankings. We don't really bother about what people are saying on the outside," the skipper said.

One defeat can't make a team, which has been winning games of Test cricket, "bad overnight".

"If we have lost then we have no shame in accepting that. It means we didn't play this game well. It doesn't mean that we have become a bad team overnight. People might want to change our thoughts, but it doesn't work like that."

The self-belief is intact and Kohli was confident the team would come back stronger in the second Test, to be held in Christchurch in four days time.

"We will work hard, and after four days play just like we have played all these years. Just because we have lost one match in between all wins, doesn't mean that the belief is gone. The dressing room thinks differently and team atmosphere is different."

Kohli felt that there is a very thin line between being ultra-defensive and over-attacking, something that his team didn't get it right in this Test match.

"New Zealand got into the mind of the batsmen and make the batsmen do something that they don't want to. think that's a very thin line and a very delicate balance of when to attack and when to put bowlers under pressure which we failed to do in this match and there is no harm in accepting that."

According to Kohli, it was a combination of both good bowling from the Kiwis and Indian batsmen not putting the pressure back on bowlers, which led to the drubbing.

"That has got to do with partly good bowling from New Zealand and partly us not pressing that momentum on to them when required. "It was perfect for them because they bowled well and we allowed them to bowl well for longer periods rather than doing something about it in a partnership."

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Agencies
January 26,2020

Chennai, Jan 26: Former India cricketer Kapil Dev on Saturday said that it will be a big loss for the Indian side when MS Dhoni decides to hang up his boots.

"I think he has served the country so well and nobody has done it like him. Everyone has to retire sooner or later. He is not playing matches currently. So I don't know when he will come out one day and say -- I have had enough. I think it will be our loss because he is such a fabulous cricketer," Dev told reporters here.

In the recently released BCCI contracts list, Dhoni did not find a place for himself. The former World Cup winning captain Dev said that it is unfortunate that Dhoni was not included in the contract list.

"I feel sorry that they have not included him. 

Tendulkar, Gavaskar had to witness the same. It's not my job and I am not there to give the contract to anyone. It is the job of the cricket board. So, I don't know. You can ask this question to the cricket board. They will be able to answer this question," Dev said.

The 38-year-old Dhoni is currently enjoying some time away from the game. He last played competitive cricket during the 2019 World Cup.

Dhoni had to face criticism for his slow batting approach during India's matches in the tournament. 

Especially in the games against England and New Zealand (semi-final), he had to bear the brunt of netizens, who deemed him as the reason for the Men in Blue's loss.

BCCI released the list of central contract list of players for the period from October 2019 to September 2020.

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