Published: Feb 27, 2015, 06:12 PM (IST)
Edited: Feb 27, 2015, 06:13 PM (IST)
Ahead of the ICC Cricket World Cup match between India and United Arab Emirates (UAE) on Saturday, residents of Darpale village in Vasai will be in turmoil as to whom to cheer for. On one side is the nation, and on the other is one of their own who incidentally plays for the opposition team. (ICC Cricket World Cup 2015: Full coverage)
Swapnil Patil, UAE’s wicketkeeper-batsman, was once a Mumbaikar who dreamt about playing for the national team some day. He started his cricket journey by playing inter-school cricket, moved on to become a regular in club cricket and soon was among the probables in the Mumbai Ranji Trophy team.
After three years of patiently waiting for his chance to come, of being in the probables list without a game under his belt, Patil made a life-altering decision to shift base to UAE after getting a call from Shiva Pagarani, the owner of Yogi Group — a construction company in Dubai. (ICC Cricket World Cup 2015: Points Table)
Leaving his family and dreams of representing his own country behind, Patil started his UAE phase with a hope of playing cricket on an international platform. And well he definitely lived up to his dreams and made his sacrifices count as he is now a part of the UAE World Cup squad and is set to take on the defending champions in the matchon Saturday.
In an interview with BCCI.TV, Patil and his UAE club owner Pagarani relive the journey from the narrow lanes of Vasai to the World Cup. Describing his cricketing journey in one word, “brilliant”, Patil said, “I never thought that someday I would play international cricket, leave alone a World Cup. Never in my wildest dreams did I imagine that this day would come in my life. This is a once in a lifetime opportunity for me and I want to leave a mark at this big stage. When I started playing cricket as a kid, I only thought of representing Mumbai and India some day. However, things didn’t go the way I would have loved to in India but I am glad I am here representing UAE in the World Cup. This is an opportunity that I have got after working hard and I value this moment.”
Shiva Pagarani added, “I still remember the day when he got selected in the national team. There were celebrations in the company and it was a proud feeling for all of us. To represent the club first, score runs and then to get selected in the national team and play a World Cup was a huge moment for us. The employees and others began clicking pictures with him and congratulated him on the success. Swapnil deserves every moment of it.”
Talking about what made him move from India to UAE to pursue his dreams, he said, “I played a lot of inter-school cricket and even played in the Kanga League for a club called Patil Brothers in Vasai. I then began playing cricket for the U-14 & U-19 Mumbai team and got selected in the list of probables for the Ranji team. But it was an outstanding Mumbai team eleven years back with some big names and it was getting tough to get games. Three years with the team without a game tested my patience. That is when I thought that it was time to move out and play cricket. At that time Shiva Pagarani called my father and spoke to him about the prospect of playing in Dubai.”
Patil said he doesn’t regret not representing Mumbai or India, at least not anymore,but he does love Mumbai. But at the moment, representing UAE is of utmost priority for him. “I am proud of the fact that I am playing for a country that has allowed me to showcase my talent. Being an Indian there is obviously a bundle of emotions but I am representing UAE and I would want to give my best for the country I am playing for. More than anything this will be a huge learning curve for me to notice outstanding cricketers from close quarters. This will help me nurture my game and become a better cricketer.”
During his Mumbai Ranji time, Patil said he never spoke to Sachin Tendulkar but did practice together once during the preparations for the Ranji Trophy tournament. “It was just another regular practice session, but for me it was a huge moment. It gave me an opportunity to notice and learn from a genius at work. To practice alongside him is a moment I will cherish forever.”
When asked if he’s in touch with his old mates back in Mumbai, Patil replied, “I am very good friends with Ajinkya Rahane and we have played a lot of club cricket together for Mulund Gymkhana. I haven’t been in regular touch with him but remember bumping into him once at the airport when he was coming back after a South Africa tour. At that time I spoke to him and it felt great to meet an old friend. Now when I see him playing so well for India, I feel proud of his achievements. I am excited to meet him and the team and play against them. I still follow Ranji games on TV whenever I get time off from work and my cricket.”
Reminiscing about his initial days in UAE and his stint playing club cricket, he said “I came to Dubai for the pure passion of pursuing my love for the game. I got a job along with it and represented the Yogi group playing club cricket. It was tough initially but then I started getting more game time and scored a lot of runs. I came to Dubai in 2006 and played club cricket for four years and finally got qualified to play for UAE. I made my first-class debut in 2010 against Bermuda and my ODI debut in 2014. I made an unbeaten 99 in that game against Scotland and ran out of partners at the other end. I missed out on a 100 and scoring one on debut would have been a big moment. Hope I get one in this World Cup.”
Pagarani said Swapnil has all the shots in the book and his commitment to the game is second to none. “I remember a few years back, he was playing a game for us when he was carrying high fever. He didn’t tell anyone that he was ill but he just went to bat and scored at will. That is when I got to know about his commitment towards the game and how much he loves playing cricket. It is because of his hard work that he has reached this stage and credit to him for what he is at the moment.”
Patil found it difficult adjusting to the cement tracks even after playing cricket continuously in Mumbai. “I was clueless since I was not used to playing on such tracks back in Mumbai. I still remember it was a spinner who came to bowl to me at first, gave good flight to the ball and invited me to play the big shot. I fell for it and tried to heave it out but the ball bounced more than expected and I nicked the ball and got out.”
“I went back to Shiva sir and asked him how to bat on such tracks. He taught me how to play on such tracks and helped me improve my game to a great extent. Also, there are a lot of Pakistan players who play in UAE and they are used to playing on cement tracks. I observed them and spoke to them and slowly began to learn playing under those conditions.”
The wicket-keeper batsman idolises Indian skipper MS Dhoni and shares the same jersey number [No. 7]. “This is the first time I would be watching him from close quarters. I would love to meet him and speak to him about wicket-keeping and learn a few things. He is brilliant in whatever he does.”
When enquired about any special plans for India ahead of their Pool B clash on Saturday at Perth, he said, “I am just going to play my natural game. We know they are World Champions but we will not worry about the result. I feel we can give a good fight to Team India. If we win, that will be a bonus for the whole team.”
