Irfan Pathan, once hailed as India’s next big all-rounder, had his international career cut short despite contributing in both departments of the game. The left-arm seamer, who could swing the ball both ways, played 29 Tests, 120 ODIs, and 24 T20Is for India. He scored 2,821 runs across formats, including a century and eleven fifties, and picked up 301 wickets, highlighted by a memorable Test hat-trick against Pakistan.
Pathan’s final outing for India in 2012 even saw him claim a five-wicket haul, but he never featured again. Speaking to SportsTak in 2020, the former all-rounder reflected on his sudden exclusion from the team, recalling a key conversation with then-skipper MS Dhoni.
“Yes, I asked him. During the 2008 Australia series, Mahi bhai’s statement came out in the media that Irfan wasn’t bowling well. So I thought I had bowled well throughout the series, so I went and asked Mahi bhai about this,” Pathan revealed.
“Sometimes, the statements are twisted in the media, so I also wanted to clarify. So Mahi bhai said, ‘No Irfan, there is nothing like this, everything’s going as per plans.’ When you get a reply like this, then you believe that okay, you do what you can. Also, if you keep asking for explanations again and again after that, you hurt your self-respect,” he added.
Pathan also hinted at a lack of off-field camaraderie with Dhoni, stressing that he preferred letting his performances speak for him.
“I don’t have a habit of setting up hookah in someone’s room or talking about this. Everyone knows. Sometimes if you don’t speak about it, it’s better. A cricketer’s job is to perform on the field and that is what I used to focus on,” he said.
The viral clip has reignited debates around Pathan’s premature exit from the Indian side, a career many fans still believe had more to offer.
