The Rediff Cricket Interview/Syed Saba Karim

'My years of dedication
have finally paid off'

Syed Saba Karim, whose cricketing career has been a roller-coaster ride for over a decade, is elated after receiving the call for the one-off Test against Bangladesh. The 32-year-old wicket-keeper-batsman says his inclusion in the Test team is a dream come true.

Though Karim represented India in the shorter version of the game on many occasions, the selectors never considered him good enough for Test duty. However, consistent performances in the domestic circuit last season, particularly the Ranji Trophy, forced them to have a rethink.

The last time he saw himself come close to donning the Test cap was in 1989, when he toured the West Indies as a standby 'keeper for Kiran More. However, much to his disappointment, he did not get a chance to prove his worth.

Destiny hasn't favoured his cause either in the one-day side after he injured his right eye during the last Asia Cup. A rising delivery from Anil Kumble bruised his eye and since then he has been out of the team. Such was the gravity of the injury that many feared he would lose sight. However, after treatment at the Sankar Netralaya eye clinic in Madras, he recovered and is now raring to go.

Rifat Jawaid met the 'Mr Dependable' of Bengal's batting. Excerpts from the conversation:

Congratulations! How does it feel to be included in the Test team?

Thanks. I am overwhelmed with joy. Frankly speaking, I have run out of words to express my feelings. After all, it has been a pretty long wait. I am thrilled that my years of dedication to the game of cricket have finally paid off.

Did the call come a little too late?

You don't always get what you wish for. Representing the country in Test matches is what every cricketer aspires for. Therefore, it's quite natural if I too felt that I should have got my chances earlier. But this is not an occasion to grumble. If the mandarins of Indian cricket have reposed faith in my ability in keeping wickets and batting, I should try to live up to their expectations by performing well on the field.

Critics say that you were preferred to M S K Prasad and Vijay Dahiya primarily because of Sourav Ganguly, who, according to BCCI secretary J Y Lele, advocated your inclusion. How do you respond to such charges?

This is not true. No one picks you to don the national cap just because the captain happens to be from your state. I have played under Mohd Azharuddin and Sachin Tendulkar before Ganguly assumed the skipper's post. How did I get selected even when Ganguly was not there at the helm of affairs? It's individual talent and your performance that prove decisive in the end. Instead of paying heed to such baseless talk, my top priority should be to focus on cricket and only cricket now.

It's of very little significance as to who thinks what about my selection. As long as my skipper, coach and members of the selection committee are convinced about my showing on the field, I am not bothered.

Were you a little disappointed after you were not picked for the ICC knockout tournament and the Sharjah triangular series?

Oh no, I wasn't hundred per cent fit then. Therefore, the question of my selection didn't even arise. It was more of the fitness aspect than anything else that went against me.

Will a good showing at Dhaka help you regain a berth even in the one-day squad?

Yeah, I am hoping to perform well in this one-off Test match. I have been practising really hard. I am hopeful that a decent performance will place me in good stead when it comes to the selection of the one-day team.

Any preferred batting order?

No preference, really. I have batted almost everywhere. I have opened the innings for India; come at number three and have also wielded the willow at number five. So it really doesn't make much difference as to which order I am sent in to bat.

How is your eye injury now?

Though I have completely recuperated, doctors have advised me to wear sun glasses. I am also wearing contact lenses and will keep wickets using them. But it won't undermine my ability behind the wickets. I am quite used to them now.

EARLIER INTERVIEW:
'You can't change your destiny.
If something has to happen, it will'

Interviews

Mail Cricket Editor