Sachin paaji, not Greg Chappell, responsible for my promotion to No.3, reveals Irfan Pathan
Irfan Pathan has revealed that it was Sachin Tendulkar who advised the then-captain Rahul Dravid to promote the all-rounder to No.3 spot in the batting order. Pathan’s elevation to No.3 was a move that did not pay dividends and the brunt of the same has often been borne by Greg Chappell.
After starting off as a prodigal swing bowler who could tonk the ball down the order, Irfan Pathan, with time, continued to show more and more promise with the bat and this, in turn, meant that occasionally, he was utilized as a pinch hitter up the order. His first outing at the No.3 spot yielding 83 runs - versus Sri Lanka in 2005 - meant that the prospect of him batting up top was a thought too enticing to turn down and by mid 2006, he became a regular feature at the No.3 spot. The fire, however, started to die with time and after almost 20 knocks at the top of the order, Pathan was demoted back to the lower order; this move, incidentally, coincided with his decline as a cricketer.
Former head coach of the Indian team Greg Chappell has often been blamed for ‘unnecessarily’ promoting Pathan and destroying his career, but the 35-year-old clarified that it was, in fact, Sachin Tendulkar who suggested the idea to send him up the order.
"I had said this after I had announced my retirement as well. Those who talk about Greg Chappell spoiling my career, by sending me as an allrounder at No. 3 and all these things… Actually, it was Sachin paaji’s idea. He advised Rahul Dravid to send me at No. 3. He said ‘he (Irfan) has the power to hit sixes, can take on the new ball and can play the fast bowlers well too,” said Pathan, speaking on Raunak Kapoor's Youtube show 'Beyond the Field', reported Times Now.
"It was tried for the first time in the series against Sri Lanka when Muralitharan was at his peak, and the idea was to attack him as well. Fernando back then had started the concept of the split-finger slower ball. Batsmen didn’t understand that too well, so the belief was if I could pull it off, it could work in our favour, especially since it was the first match of the series."
India parted ways with Greg Chappell post the 2007 World Cup and the Aussie has since been blamed for ruining Indian cricket, due to his treatment of senior cricketers, specifically Ganguly, but Pathan rushed to the defence of the former coach. The 35-year-old all-rounder stated that Chappell was being targeted and used as a scapegoat as it was easy for people to do it, due to the fact that he’s not an Indian.
"It’s not true that Greg Chappell spoiled my career. Since he was not from India, it is easier to make him a punching.”
Pathan announced his retirement from all forms of the game in January, earlier this year.