The Indian Premier League has helped in breeding countless number of talents. Some have been able to establish themselves as household names while the others have gotten lost in their shadows after brief stints in the tournament. However, there are other talented players who despite having great potential, haven’t been given many chances.
One such name is Zahoor Khan, a Pakistan-born pacer who was forced to relocate to the UAE to pursue his dream of playing top-level cricket. Zahoor joined IPL franchise, Mumbai Indians (MI) in the year 2014 and played with some of the prominent players of the side.
Zahoor’s impressive performances in the nets caught the attention of everyone, including Bumrah. He also revealed that Bumrah was so impressed with his slower-ball that he even asked him for tips on gripping the ball.
“I was with Mumbai Indians for three months. I’ve spent reasonable amount of time with Rohit Sharma, Hardik Pandya, Jasprit Bumrah. Bumrah in fact liked me so much and asked me the grip. Yeh slower ball kaise dalte ho? (How do you bowl this delivery This is a huge deal for me as he is the world’s No. 1 bowler, and he asked me about the grip. He watched my video as well in the T10 tournament where I bowled a maiden. I told him but also asked him how he bowls Yorkers with the new ball. Because only 2 people in the world can do it – Lasith Malinga and Jasprit Bumrah,” Zahoor told Sports Tak in a chat.
Even former captain of MI, Rohit Sharma was left impressed with Zahoor’s slower deliveries. When the Pakistan-born pacer arrived at MI, he was warmly welcomed by the skipper, who told him, ‘The entire stadium is yours, paaji. If you need anything, just let me know.’
10 years later, Zahoor revealed that Rohit’s friendly nature has remained unchanged over the years.
“I even bowled to Rohit Sharma. Once I bowled him a slower ball, and he kept on looking because the ball hardly reached him. Even he couldn’t pick my deliveries. He was like how can it be so slow? Then I bowled at him again. He said even if the batter picks your ball, it will never result in a six,” Zahoor said.
