Irfan, Yusuf Pathan recollect their youth cricket days

Irfan and Yusuf Pathan recently played a Ranji Trophy match at Greater Noida

Baroda-based brothers Irfan and Yusuf Pathan have both had short but explosive International careers. Irfan was once labelled as the most exciting young swing bowler from Indian subcontinent when he won several matches for India against Australia and Pakistan as a teenager. Yusuf won some limited over games for India with his powerful batting.

The brothers were recently in Noida to play a Ranji Trophy match for Baroda against Uttar Pradesh.

In a recent interview they talked about Noida’s chances of hosting international games as the stadium hosted it’s first Ranji game. The left-arm-medium-fast bowler said “The conditions here were great and the people really treated us well. But the best thing was that the ground and the facilities in Greater Noida were amazing. The crowd that came here was quite good as well - very enthusiastic and energetic. In several places, crowds tend to get carried away and say unnecessary things to players, but nothing of that sort happened here, which is a good sign. I had fun playing in Noida and I would want to come back here again.”

The fans in Noida kept chanting Yusuf’s name and the right-hand batsman commented on this “It felt great to see the fans' love and appreciation here. If domestic cricket gets this kind of crowd all across the country, players will be motivated to play a lot better. Overall, the experience was great as both the crowd and the wicket were good.”

Irfan talked about Noida’s chances to host an International match soon, saying, “Well, the ground is top quality so Noida has that going for itself. Now, the eventual decision is with the state association and authorities, but yes, as a player, I really enjoyed playing here and the city can certainly host international games pretty soon. The ground is great and the pitches are good quality, too! The only thing they need to do is to increase the seating capacity at the stadium.” he said.

When they were asked about the backyard cricket in the Pathan household, the 31 years old said “ Fortunately, both of us liked to bowl as well as bat and used to fight over it, so we both ended up becoming all-rounders. Both of us managed to develop both the disciplines.”

Day-night Tests can be a success in India too: Irfan

The left-hander said, “The day-night test has been a success there and whenever a new innovation in cricket attains success, it spreads to all countries slowly. Just like T20 started in England and then gradually spread around the world. So, I'm sure that this will reach India as well. Now, how it will happen and what form it will take is up to the BCCI. But I really think day-night Test match is a real crowd-puller.”

Yusuf also added, “Obviously, it is a crowd-puller because it is something new for the fans. They might be able to catch games after work in the evenings this way. I would love to play in the format of the board decides to have such games in India.”