‘Bad mind’ keeps Khan taking wickets

ONCE Imran Khan’s name is mentioned locally, there is an automatic question that follows: “What does he have to do again to represent West Indies?” For more than a decade, Khan has dominated all formats of regional cricket and he is still awaiting a much deserved call from the Windies selectors. For now, he will be suiting up in blue for his third season with the Barbados Tridents in the Hero Caribbean Premier League (CPL).

Khan’s consistent performances have been fuelled by pressuring himself to do well while answering the critics. He said, “I use it as bad mind to prove them wrong because I keep getting a raw deal for West Indies; so I try to prove them wrong by keeping up my good performances.”

Khan registered 48 wickets in the Regional Four-Day tournament at an average of 25.54, and scoring upwards of 250 runs. His best bowling figures in an innings was six for 59 and for a match was 10 for 112. In the 2016-2017 season, Khan was again the second best wicket-taking bowler with 44 scalps and finished third in 2015-2016 with the same amount of wickets. The leg-spinner has consistently maintained his place in the top three of the most wickets table. The all-rounder was instrumental in his club Comets winning the local league for the first time in close to 15 years, chipping in with 250 runs and breaking the record for most wickets ever in a season with 68 in just seven matches.

For now, the 34-year-old has shifted his focus to the Tridents. He said, “I will be looking to take my chance once I get to play and try to be more consistent in everything I do, whether bowling and batting. I’m mostly seen as a bowler so I would try to do my best bowling and do whatever the team requires of me.”

He continued, “Preparations are going great and you tend to learn a lot from the international players as well as our international coach Robin Singh. You can’t ask for anything better, working with Singh for the past few years, I have learnt a lot and still learning.”

Khan was retained by the TT Red Force for yet another year in the WICB Professional League for the 2018-2019 season. His first-class record stands as 368 wickets from 92 games including 21 five-wicket hauls and four 10-wicket hauls. With the bat, he has scored 2,834 runs from 152 innings with a top score of 125 runs versus Leeward Islands. For West Indies A team, the Trinidadian claimed 36 wickets and scored 361 runs in 34 matches.Khan will be hoping to put in a commendable performance in this year`s CPL to further stake his claim to wear the maroon for the Windies.