Mohammed Kaif - The Forgotten Hero

[pensionplan]

Some of the criticism coming towards him is uncalled for. At the time he was playing (2002-2005/6) we tried many players like Dinesh Mongia' date=' Hemang Badani, S Sriram, Venugopal Rao etc, but, however good these players were in FC, they were never able to translate that FC performance into good performances at the international level.[/quote']Not true at all. Giving a chance here or there does not equate to an extended run. Badani and Sriram never got a continuous rope that some other players have got. But the point is this with regards to Kaif. Keeping aside his international career when he continually played FC cricket for the last 4 years he lags far behind some of the other players that are always on the fringes but never gotten a chance while the useless Kaif did. Goes on to show what a folly it was to give this guy that kind of a rope where he logged in 138 international games. After being dropped he showed what he is really made up of. Never able to perform to the levels that are really needed to earn an international call up. What does that tell you? That he indeed is useless. And in the same span(2006-2010) players like Gambhir, Pujara, Badrinath, M.Vijay, Parthiv Patel, Dinesh Karthik, Jaffer, Mithun, Ojha, Abhishek Nayar, Yusuf Pathan, Mukund all to name a few at least broke into the Test or ODI 15 performing well on the domestic circuit. And 'His Uselessness' could not even accomplish that despite having the edge over the others with so much international experience by 2006. Goes on to show the 'Stroke less Wonder' indeed got lucky in his initial years.

[Sachin=GOD]

Not true at all. Giving a chance here or there does not equate to an extended run. Badani and Sriram never got a continuous rope that some other players have got. But the point is this with regards to Kaif. Keeping aside his international career when he continually played FC cricket for the last 4 years he lags far behind some of the other players that are always on the fringes but never gotten a chance while the useless Kaif did. Goes on to show what a folly it was to give this guy that kind of a rope where he logged in 138 international games. After being dropped he showed what he is really made up of. Never able to perform to the levels that are really needed to earn an international call up. What does that tell you? That he indeed is useless. And in the same span(2006-2010) players like Gambhir' date= Pujara, Badrinath, M.Vijay, Parthiv Patel, Dinesh Karthik, Jaffer, Mithun, Ojha, Abhishek Nayar, Yusuf Pathan, Mukund all to name a few at least broke into the Test or ODI 15 performing well on the domestic circuit. And 'His Uselessness' could not even accomplish that despite having the edge over the others with so much international experience by 2006. Goes on to show the 'Stroke less Wonder' indeed got lucky in his initial years.

almost all of these players have been performing well for the last 4-5 years (i.e. they started to perform well when Kaif's decline as an international player started) but during that period when Kaif played most of his matches (2002-05/6) India did not have so many options as we have now and Kaif, while not a very good FC player, was able to perform better at the international level than players like Badani and Mongia (who got 40 and 57 ODIs respectively) so he was given more opportunities. Looking back at his standard now we all are saying that he was useless and did not deserve so many international caps but this is because right now Indian cricket has a problem of plenty in the batting department and we can say that a player like Kaif can never make it to the team right now, but this was not so in that time, so Kaif, while always an average (though hardworking) player, got to play so many matches.

[jusarrived]

any one seen that movie Taxi 9211 ? thers a funny scene in that ,with Nana Pathekar ....seeing his son fielding . Nana: Bat kis ka hai Beta: Mera Nana: To phir fielding kai ko karta hai, Tendulkar banne ka, kaif nahi :hysterical:

[Sid]

any one seen that movie Taxi 9211 ? thers a funny scene in that ,with Nana Pathekar ....seeing his son fielding . Nana: Bat kis ka hai Beta: Mera Nana: To phir fielding kai ko karta hai, Tendulkar banne ka, kaif nahi :hysterical:

Ya that was a good one :hysterical:

[Sachin=GOD]

any one seen that movie Taxi 9211 ? thers a funny scene in that ,with Nana Pathekar ....seeing his son fielding . Nana: Bat kis ka hai Beta: Mera Nana: To phir fielding kai ko karta hai, Tendulkar banne ka, kaif nahi :hysterical:

:haha::haha::haha::haha:

[pensionplan]

almost all of these players have been performing well for the last 4-5 years (i.e. they started to perform well when Kaif's decline as an international player started) but during that period when Kaif played most of his matches (2002-05/6) India did not have so many options as we have now and Kaif, while not a very good FC player, was able to perform better at the international level than players like Badani and Mongia (who got 40 and 57 ODIs respectively) so he was given more opportunities. Looking back at his standard now we all are saying that he was useless and did not deserve so many international caps but this is because right now Indian cricket has a problem of plenty in the batting department and we can say that a player like Kaif can never make it to the team right now, but this was not so in that time, so Kaif, while always an average (though hardworking) player, got to play so many matches.

There is no such thing as India did not have that many options in the 2002-2005 time span. It is just that some of the players are little sisters of the poor that did not carry the U-19 hype and being flashy in the field. Also coming to Badani getting 40 games primarily as a filler is not the same as a player like Kaif getting an extended rope with 125 ODI games. When I looked at Kaif right from the get go I was never convinced with his technique and the shaky stance that was always suspect facing quality pace and no conviction versus the spinners. Any player that plays 125 ODI games will have a decent knock here or there. That does not always tell the full tale. When he is put to test now in the domestic circuit and claw his way back into the national reckoning he is proving me right when I all along was asking to promote players who came through the ranks via doing the hard yards in the domestic circuit. So no I am not being a fair weather fan at all where I am being I told you so with regards to 'His Uselessness'. And one more thing these last 2-3 years are supposed to be his best years the dude just having turned 30. It is not as if he is past his prime.

[b555]

any one seen that movie Taxi 9211 ? thers a funny scene in that ,with Nana Pathekar ....seeing his son fielding . Nana: Bat kis ka hai Beta: Mera Nana: To phir fielding kai ko karta hai, Tendulkar banne ka, kaif nahi :hysterical:

:rotfl:

[Sooda]

Not true at all. Giving a chance here or there does not equate to an extended run. Badani and Sriram never got a continuous rope that some other players have got. But the point is this with regards to Kaif. Keeping aside his international career when he continually played FC cricket for the last 4 years he lags far behind some of the other players that are always on the fringes but never gotten a chance while the useless Kaif did. Goes on to show what a folly it was to give this guy that kind of a rope where he logged in 138 international games. After being dropped he showed what he is really made up of. Never able to perform to the levels that are really needed to earn an international call up. What does that tell you? That he indeed is useless. And in the same span(2006-2010) players like Gambhir' date=' Pujara, Badrinath, M.Vijay, Parthiv Patel, Dinesh Karthik, Jaffer, Mithun, Ojha, Abhishek Nayar, Yusuf Pathan, Mukund all to name a few at least broke into the Test or ODI 15 performing well on the domestic circuit. And 'His Uselessness' could not even accomplish that despite having the edge over the others with so much international experience by 2006. Goes on to show the 'Stroke less Wonder' indeed got lucky in his initial years.[/quote'] Ill be the first to admit he is not a great ODI bat. Now read the post I put up a little way above man. Firstly his performances in FC cricket...they have declined this year but ... Let us go back a bit... as I have pointed out above-He averaged 48 in the 08/09 season and led UP to the final where they lost to a strong Mumbai. Even scored a 72 in the final against a near India quality attak- Zak, Aggy, Powar, Kulkarni Averaged 57 with two tons in the 07/08 season where he AGAIN led UP to the final losing to Delhi this time. Even last year though his Ranji form was not so hot he had a great Duleep trophy. Scored a ton as skipper of Central Zone vs a South Zone of Ashwin, Vinay Kumar and Mithun and double century vs East Zone. He really should have been in the test squad to face South Africa last year- Ahead of Rohit (who ultimately got injured and in the ensuing farce Saha played as a batter) So what you say about him not performing in domestic cricket is quite wrong. Moving on to test matches, Kaif showed he a man for a crisis in the series vs Australia in 04. A difficult few matches for India, but he played a solid innings in Chennai with a 60+ and held the batting together as we got d!cked on in Nagpur the only man to score anything substantial he made a half century. Now that series SHOULD have seen him be picked in the squads more regularly but he didnt play next a whole year later, an ordinary match vs SL. But then in the match when we lost to England again at Nagpur he scored 90+ as Hoggard ripped through the lineup. Finally gets the recog he deserved and his performances merited.. he tours WI has a GOOD series there, scores a good century there. Only to be dropped to pave the way for Gangulys return and not seen again. This is two tests after scoring a 148*. When South Africa toured India in 08, Kaif was selected for the second test; replacing Tendulkar in the squad when he got injured. http://www.espncricinfo.com/indvrsa/content/story/344538.html Rewarded for a fine FC season. He did not play, Yuvraj did. but Then he was never heard of again ! Despite his fine Ranji form. In short Kaif has been very harshly treated, some bizarre and inconsistent selectorial decisions have gone against him. So yeah. Youre wrong.

[pensionplan]

Ill be the first to admit he is not a great ODI bat. Now read the post I put up a little way above man. Firstly his performances in FC cricket...they have declined this year but ... Let us go back a bit... as I have pointed out above-He averaged 48 in the 08/09 season and led UP to the final where they lost to a strong Mumbai. Even scored a 72 in the final against a near India quality attak- Zak, Aggy, Powar, Kulkarni Averaged 57 with two tons in the 07/08 season where he AGAIN led UP to the final losing to Delhi this time. Even last year though his Ranji form was not so hot he had a great Duleep trophy. Scored a ton as skipper of Central Zone vs a South Zone of Ashwin, Vinay Kumar and Mithun and double century vs East Zone. He really should have been in the test squad to face South Africa last year- Ahead of Rohit (who ultimately got injured and in the ensuing farce Saha played as a batter) So what you say about him not performing in domestic cricket is quite wrong. Moving on to test matches, Kaif showed he a man for a crisis in the series vs Australia in 04. A difficult few matches for India, but he played a solid innings in Chennai with a 60+ and held the batting together as we got d!cked on in Nagpur the only man to score anything substantial he made a half century. Now that series SHOULD have seen him be picked in the squads more regularly but he didnt play next a whole year later, an ordinary match vs SL. But then in the match when we lost to England again at Nagpur he scored 90+ as Hoggard ripped through the lineup. Finally gets the recog he deserved and his performances merited.. he tours WI has a GOOD series there, scores a good century there. Only to be dropped to pave the way for Gangulys return and not seen again. This is two tests after scoring a 148*. When South Africa toured India in 08, Kaif was selected for the second test; replacing Tendulkar in the squad when he got injured. http://www.espncricinfo.com/indvrsa/content/story/344538.html Rewarded for a fine FC season. He did not play, Yuvraj did. but Then he was never heard of again ! Despite his fine Ranji form. In short Kaif has been very harshly treated, some bizarre and inconsistent selectorial decisions have gone against him. So yeah. Youre wrong.

I am sure you can get to each one of the good knocks he had in his career. Because 'His Uselessness' has managed far and few between his whole FC and undeserved Test career. This guy's FC average is a whopping 42 with 13 centuries. Let us see some of the other players numbers at the FC level and see how this 'Strokeless Wonder' compares. Badrinath has a FC average of 61 with 25 centuries which took 5.25 innings to score a century Pujara has a FC average of 57 with 14 centuries which took 6.0 innings to score a century Jaffer has a FC average of 51 with 43 centuries which took 7.4 innings to score a century Rahane has a FC average of 68 with 16 centuries which took 4.6 innings to score a century Mukund has a FC average of 59 with 11 centuries which took 4.7 innings to score a century and last and the least Kaif has a FC average of 42 with 13 centuries which took a shameless 14.28 innings to score a century So if you want to say he had a decent Ranji season or two that is all relative because when he is compared in a like to like competition with his peers he gets steamrolled. So nothing he did in the FC cricket since he got booted out of the Indian team a place where he did not belong to in the first place is praise worthy when other players are brought in for comparison that did not even get anywhere close to the 138 international games this shaker in the boots got. But you can keep dwelling on the Kaif archives and enjoy his FC career especially the season or two where he might have accidentally crossed 50 plus average an average that is quite common for a ton of players over a career lasting several years. To each his own. So no I am the not the one that is wrong on 'His Uselessness'. You know that and I know it.

[Sachin=GOD]

I am sure you can get to each one of the good knocks he had in his career. Because 'His Uselessness' has managed far and few between his whole FC and undeserved Test career. This guy's FC average is a whopping 42 with 13 centuries. Let us see some of the other players numbers at the FC level and see how this 'Strokeless Wonder' compares. Badrinath has a FC average of 61 with 25 centuries which took 5.25 innings to score a century Pujara has a FC average of 57 with 14 centuries which took 6.0 innings to score a century Jaffer has a FC average of 51 with 43 centuries which took 7.4 innings to score a century Rahane has a FC average of 68 with 16 centuries which took 4.6 innings to score a century Mukund has a FC average of 59 with 11 centuries which took 4.7 innings to score a century and last and the least Kaif has a FC average of 42 with 13 centuries which took a shameless 14.28 innings to score a century So if you want to say he had a decent Ranji season or two that is all relative because when he is compared in a like to like competition with his peers he gets steamrolled. So nothing he did in the FC cricket since he got booted out of the Indian team a place where he did not belong to in the first place is praise worthy when other players are brought in for comparison that did not even get anywhere close to the 138 international games this shaker in the boots got. But you can keep dwelling on the Kaif archives and enjoy his FC career especially the season or two where he might have accidentally crossed 50 plus average an average that is quite common for a ton of players over a career lasting several years. To each his own. So no I am the not the one that is wrong on 'His Uselessness'. You know that and I know it.

why are you comparing Kaif to players like Pujara, Rahane, Mukund - all these have started performing AFTER 2006 i.e. after Kaif's decline as an international started. As for comparing him to Jaffer, well its laughable to say the least - comparing an opener to a middle order batsman. Jaffer would have batted in the openers slot even if Kaif had not been in the Indian team. The only fair comparison is to Badrinath and I will say that Badri got less chances and he deserved more. At the time Kaif got most of his chances for the Indian team (i.e. 2002-2005), most of the players like Rahane, Mukund, Pujura, Kohli, Raina, Rohit Sharma etc were not even on the international scene (Raina was the first among all these to make his international debut and that was around july 2005) and there were far less choices for the selectors as compared to now. If you say that Kaif did not deserve a chance in the team post 2006 I completely agree with you - he has done nothing noteworthy in the past 4 years but in years 2002-05 many players were tried but failed on the international scene despite their huge FC avgs and many centuries.

[Sooda]

I am sure you can get to each one of the good knocks he had in his career. Because 'His Uselessness' has managed far and few between his whole FC and undeserved Test career. This guy's FC average is a whopping 42 with 13 centuries. Let us see some of the other players numbers at the FC level and see how this 'Strokeless Wonder' compares. Badrinath has a FC average of 61 with 25 centuries which took 5.25 innings to score a century Pujara has a FC average of 57 with 14 centuries which took 6.0 innings to score a century Jaffer has a FC average of 51 with 43 centuries which took 7.4 innings to score a century Rahane has a FC average of 68 with 16 centuries which took 4.6 innings to score a century Mukund has a FC average of 59 with 11 centuries which took 4.7 innings to score a century and last and the least Kaif has a FC average of 42 with 13 centuries which took a shameless 14.28 innings to score a century So if you want to say he had a decent Ranji season or two that is all relative because when he is compared in a like to like competition with his peers he gets steamrolled. So nothing he did in the FC cricket since he got booted out of the Indian team a place where he did not belong to in the first place is praise worthy when other players are brought in for comparison that did not even get anywhere close to the 138 international games this shaker in the boots got. But you can keep dwelling on the Kaif archives and enjoy his FC career especially the season or two where he might have accidentally crossed 50 plus average an average that is quite common for a ton of players over a career lasting several years. To each his own. So no I am the not the one that is wrong on 'His Uselessness'. You know that and I know it.

I notice you had nothing to say whatsoever about the commendable test match performances I have pointed to...and the fact that actually he was doing well in tests before he was dropped for no reason... and each time he was dropped it was unfairly given his performances in the opportunities he had...Im willing to bet his average in the last 10 or so tests he played is 40+. Btw he only had a 13 test career so his test career certainly was not one over several years/matches. With regards to FC cricket, the point was he was not picked despite some good seasons, which coupled with the test performances I have pointed to should have seen him ahead of his peers. And when he did make a squad- deservedly ahead of Badri and the likes - about 2 seasons ago vs SA he did not get a chance to play and was discarded never to be heard of again.

[pensionplan]

I am sure you can get to each one of the good knocks he had in his career. Because 'His Uselessness' has managed far and few between his whole FC and undeserved Test career. This guy's FC average is a whopping 42 with 13 centuries. Let us see some of the other players numbers at the FC level and see how this 'Strokeless Wonder' compares. Badrinath has a FC average of 61 with 25 centuries which took 5.25 innings to score a century Pujara has a FC average of 57 with 14 centuries which took 6.0 innings to score a century Jaffer has a FC average of 51 with 43 centuries which took 7.4 innings to score a century Rahane has a FC average of 68 with 16 centuries which took 4.6 innings to score a century Mukund has a FC average of 59 with 11 centuries which took 4.7 innings to score a century and last and the least Kaif has a FC average of 42 with 13 centuries which took a shameless 14.28 innings to score a century So if you want to say he had a decent Ranji season or two that is all relative because when he is compared in a like to like competition with his peers he gets steamrolled. So nothing he did in the FC cricket since he got booted out of the Indian team a place where he did not belong to in the first place is praise worthy when other players are brought in for comparison that did not even get anywhere close to the 138 international games this shaker in the boots got. But you can keep dwelling on the Kaif archives and enjoy his FC career especially the season or two where he might have accidentally crossed 50 plus average an average that is quite common for a ton of players over a career lasting several years. To each his own. So no I am the not the one that is wrong on 'His Uselessness'. You know that and I know it.

I notice you had nothing to say whatsoever about the commendable test match performances I have pointed to...and the fact that actually he was doing well in tests before he was dropped for no reason... and each time he was dropped it was unfairly given his performances in the opportunities he had...Im willing to bet his average in the last 10 or so tests he played is 40+. Btw he only had a 13 test career so his test career certainly was not one over several years/matches. again.

This is the best you got. Though I understand when it comes to the career of 'His Uselesness' there is not much there. But you should keep commending a 32 average Test career having the Kaif tinted magnifying glasses on when in the first place he was not worthy of it nor deserving of a place. Any FC player who toiled hard from the list of players I mentioned in various posts that have steamrolled the 'Strokeless Wonder' head to head in FC games would have had a much better returns if given a chance both for themselves and the team. That in itself a sad commentary on how the better talent and prospects were not rewarded.

With regards to FC cricket, the point was he was not picked despite some good seasons, which coupled with the test performances I have pointed to should have seen him ahead of his peers. And when he did make a squad- deservedly ahead of Badri and the likes - about 2 seasons ago vs SA he did not get a chance to play and was discarded never to be heard of

Yes take another look at the averages of his peers on how well they performed and see how this mediocre player compares in the four years since he got the royal boot from the national side and see what a midget he looks like . And you suggest that good performances should not be rewarded. May be that is the power of the Kaif tinted glasses.

[pensionplan]

why are you comparing Kaif to players like Pujara, Rahane, Mukund - all these have started performing AFTER 2006 i.e. after Kaif's decline as an international started. As for comparing him to Jaffer, well its laughable to say the least - comparing an opener to a middle order batsman. Jaffer would have batted in the openers slot even if Kaif had not been in the Indian team. The only fair comparison is to Badrinath and I will say that Badri got less chances and he deserved more. At the time Kaif got most of his chances for the Indian team (i.e. 2002-2005), most of the players like Rahane, Mukund, Pujura, Kohli, Raina, Rohit Sharma etc were not even on the international scene (Raina was the first among all these to make his international debut and that was around july 2005) and there were far less choices for the selectors as compared to now. If you say that Kaif did not deserve a chance in the team post 2006 I completely agree with you - he has done nothing noteworthy in the past 4 years but in years 2002-05 many players were tried but failed on the international scene despite their huge FC avgs and many centuries

Does not matter when his decline has started since there never was a purple patch to a career that hovers in the low 30's average(125 ODI's + 13 Tests) combined. It is like trying to scratch on a bottom less surface. When it comes to Kaif there is no such thing as a decline as much his inability to cut it at this level. That is where the comparisons with his peers who outperformed him comes into the picture. And by the way in 2006 when he was kicked off the team he was 26 and not 36. If he was that good should he have not outperformed his peers that too against attacks that are not international quality over the last four years. That did not happen. So what does that tell one about Kaif? That he is not a quality player. Plain and simple. And now to the point of Jaffer and why I had to bring him in. My aim was to not compare positions as much as to show against the same attacks, same teams and same opposing bowlers how Kaif did and also to prove how well others did and not fortunate enough to be considered anywhere close to 138 international games. And on your mentioning of Badri not getting enough chances. Of course he did not. That is where the issue is when good solid FC performers are not rewarded while players like Kaif made it big for no reason. And even in the 2002-2005 time frame someone like a Sriram IMO would have been a better investment who had some excellent FC foundation that was an excellent fielder and also a decent spinner.

[Sooda]

This is the best you got. Though I understand when it comes to the career of 'His Uselesness' there is not much there. But you should keep commending a 32 average Test career having the Kaif tinted magnifying glasses on when in the first place he was not worthy of it nor deserving of a place. Any FC player who toiled hard from the list of players I mentioned in various posts that have steamrolled the 'Strokeless Wonder' head to head in FC games would have had a much better returns if given a chance both for themselves and the team. That in itself a sad commentary on how the better talent and prospects were not rewarded. Yes take another look at the averages of his peers on how well they performed and see how this mediocre player compares in the four years since he got the royal boot from the national side and see what a midget he looks like . And you suggest that good performances should not be rewarded. May be that is the power of the Kaif tinted glasses.

I notice you had nothing to say whatsoever about the commendable test match performances I have pointed to...and the fact that actually he was doing well in tests before he was dropped for no reason... and each time he was dropped it was unfairly given his performances in the opportunities he had...Im willing to bet his average in the last 10 or so tests he played is 40+. Btw he only had a 13 test career so his test career certainly was not one over several years/matches.

[shubham45]

any one seen that movie Taxi 9211 ? thers a funny scene in that ,with Nana Pathekar ....seeing his son fielding . Nana: Bat kis ka hai Beta: Mera Nana: To phir fielding kai ko karta hai, Tendulkar banne ka, kaif nahi :hysterical:

evfen if he scored less runs ...he saved several runs trough his feilding efforts ...whenever a fielder makes a desperate attempt to stop a ball ...he is always compared to kaif ...even in gully cricket .....Thats his achievement ......... kaif n yuvi were d 1 hu were responsible for the upliftment of indian fielding standard....which encouraged the likes of raina and badri ...so his contributions cannot be neglected at all.. ..MOHD KAIF

[prinzo]

Mohammed Kaif Whateva happend to this talent , remember that special inning when he won the match for INDIA chasinh over 300 to win the ODI against England at lords. Where is he now , howcome he is not in the team , did he lose his batting form?

[ch1234]

Where is he now ' date=' howcome he is not in the team , QUOTE'] He is in the team (Central zone team for Dulip Trophy), where he deservedely belongs to..

[sarcastic]

He got a fair opportunity to play a blinder at the end but he did not impress me at all!!!!!!! Got out in a silly way without making any proper contribution at all Where is the Mohd Kaif of Natwest Final 2002 or Ind-Pak ODI series in 2004!!!!!! Kaif has to use his opportunities in IPL to the maximum for any chance of an international comeback!!!!!! If he is indeed not a T20 material, why is he not selected for test matches!!!

[vijay810]

Kaif was not a great player but he was not useless either. He was hard trier who worked hard to perform well despite his limited abilities. Badrinath is one player who missed out those days since Kaif was in team. Kaif contributed to some famous victories either through his fielding or through his batting which may not be great to watch but was effective. Do not call him useless if you dont feel him worth admiring .

[Bumper]

Kaipoo was an untalented hardworking cricketer who made the most out of his Natwest finals performance. He does not have more than a handful of performances to show in a ODI career that lasted in excess of 5 years. Given the batting might of the Indian lineup and Kaipoo's limitations, he did not deserve to bat higher than no. 6 or 7 which btw was cited as the top reason for his pathetic showing in ODI cricket. In contrast, some of the other batsmen who have batted at no. 6 or below (such as Yuvraj, Raina) have made quite a name for themselves. In tests, his supporters would point to his 50s against Australia and his century in WI and wonder why he was not persisted, but Ganguly's return (ironically it was Ganguly who let kaipoo to make a living playing international cricket), finished him off. Overall Kaipoo did not do enough in either forms of the game to come across as a worthy investment, esp given that he hails from a country that is known for its batting superstars. People have forgotten Kaipoo because he was never a hero!