Aman extends his purple patch

For many cricketers, Under-19 cricket has been a stepping-stone to follow the path to become international stars. Apart from Virat Kohli’s fairytale, the current contingent led by Prithvi Shaw returned home to overwhelming responses along with lucrative Indian Premier League (IPL) contracts.

The fast-tracking of U-19 team heroes into the senior team is given a greater impetus over domestic performances. Both competitions have different aspects but one has players from other countries and one does not.

Mumbai has seen Shaw and someone like Armaan Jaffer become household names in the past. There was one more youngster who could have risen to these ranks if an injury didn’t force him out. Aman Khan, who plays for D.Y. Patil at the club level talks about almost making it to the Mumbai team if he was not forced into clutches. “I finished as the top wicket-taker but I got a ligament tear in my left knee,” he sighs.

But the misery did not end for him then. “As soon as I got back to training, I tore my right knee ligament. It became really tough to bounce back to my form after these problems,” Aman says sharing bits of his past.

After a few hiccups, Aman retuned, but missed out on the opportunity of being a part of the colts. But this season, he has been highly effective with the bat at the ball in local club cricket. Most of his scores in club competitions have been over 50 and if he manages to carry this form, the all-rounder could earn his dream debut for Mumbai.

He carried his form to the Mumbai T20 League where he scored 186 runs while playing in the middle order for NaMo Bandra Blasters. In the very first game, he smashed a 26-ball 62 to announce himself on the big stage. He feels that limited overs cricket is very his destiny lies.

Aman reckons himself as a strong player of the T20 format and he was pretty sure of a contract after his trials, which he calls “extraordinary”. But only if the league was scheduled to be before the auctions he believes that he could be part of a franchise. “My performances were strong and I thought that I could make it,” he says.

Another one from the family
For good 20 years of his life, Aman’s father played club cricket in Mumbai mostly for BPCL. “ I used to go to watch his office games and that’s when I thought that even I should pick up that bat. I started training at Shivaji Park and honed my skills over there,” he says. Aman admits that his father has played a pivotal role in carving a solid cricketer.

Senior’s advice
The 21-year old all-rounder from Navi Mumbai has traveled long distances to become the cricketer he always wanted to. He still goes to Shivaji Park and trains under decorated coach Pravin Amre, who also trains Shreyas Iyer, a close friend of Aman’s. They trained together in the Dadar ground and even though they are placed in different age groups, the duo shares a camaraderie.

Iyer and Aman’s batting styles are very similar. Both of them have the ability to consolidate and pack a punch when needed. Aman says the difference was in Iyer’s mental approach that allowed him to earn a national cap. “I asked him what did he change in his game and he told me that we both have a similar game but the change was in his approach psychologically. He started to see things with a different perspective and I am learning from him,” he says.

Aman is still playing club cricket to stay in the groove with his aim being a contract in the IPL. The youngster could very well feature for Mumbai in the next domestic season.