Hyderabad: A young Jammu and Kashmir based cricketer, Abdul Samad made his IPL debut for the Sunrisers Hyderabad against Delhi Capitals on Tuesday.
Who is Abdul Samad of SRH?
In November last year, former India cricketer and Sunrisers Hyderabad mentor V.V.S. Laxman had called up Jammu and Kashmir coach Milap Mewada, enquiring about young players who the franchise could select for Sunrisers Hyderabad team ahead of the Indian Premier League auction.
And Mewada, an old friend and under-19 teammate of Laxman, recommended the name of Abdul Samad. Even Laxman’s Team India mate, Irfan Pathan – who was the mentor of Jammu and Kashmir – suggested that Sunrisers should try out Samad – a fearless hitter and a good finisher.
Abdul Samad’s price
According to reports, Sunrisers Hyderabad took Abdul Samad for his base price of INR 20 lakh in the December 2019 auction.
Irrfan Pathan’s mentorship
Irrfan Pathan and Mewada first spotted Samad as a 16-year-old in 2018, at a trial in Jammu. Speaking to one of the sports media, Pathan said, “He was effortlessly hitting the ball. But when I looked through his numbers, he didn’t have one 50-plus score. I took him aside and told him he would be put in the probables, but he needed to work on preserving his wicket. It’s not about six-hitting”.
Mentored by Irfan Pathan, the J&K player-cum-mentor and endorsed by Milap Mewada, the coach, Samad became the fourth player from J&K to break into the IPL after Parvez Rasool, Mansoor Dar and Rasikh Salam.
Abdul Samad hits bowler Anrich Nortje for a six
On Tuesday, Abdul Samad said that hitting Delhi Capitals’ bowler Anrich Nortje for a six in yesterday’s clash of IPL 2020 gave him confidence to perform well in the tournament. Samad scored 12 runs in seven balls in the match against Delhi Capitals. Samad played in the game in place of Mohammad Nabi.
He also added that he felt good playing his first match of the IPL, in a post-match conversation with his teammate Rashid Khan, who won the player of the match award for his performance.
Abdul Samad further stated that after hitting Nortje for a big six, he believes that he can do well in the coming fixtures.