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Journalism of Courage
From cricket on the streets of Peenya,an industrial zone on the outskirts of Bangalore,to a place in Team India for the first Test against South Africa,Abhimanyu Mithuns journey to the top has been as quick as his bowling just three years and one first class season.
Father Malaiah Abhimanyu owned a gymnasium,so Mithun took to athletics in his early teens but lost interest after a series of mediocre results at state-level competitions. But in his neighbour,former India paceman Dodda Ganesh,Mithun soon found a tutor,one who ensured his talent wasnt lost on the streets of Peenya.
And today,on learning that Mithun was in the India squad,an elated Ganesh predicted that India had found a second Javagal Srinath from Karnataka.
Ive been working with him for the last 2-3 years. At the start of the season,I told him to be the highest wicket-taker in the country and win matches for Karnataka, Ganesh told The Indian Express.
This Ranji season,which started with a hat-trick against Uttar Pradesh in a match where he terrorised the batsmen with his short ball that rose sharply from a good length,Mithun started to fulfill that promise. With 47 wickets at 23.23 apiece and a five-wicket haul in the final he was the highest wicket-taker in the season,creating a buzz in every domestic venue that he visited.
Wasim Jaffer,a veteran of 31 Tests and one of the most consistent batsmen in the domestic circuit,was impressed after facing him in the final. He is quick,his pace is consistently in the high 130s,and his big inswingers got him a lot of wickets, he said.
Mithuns father Abhimanyu remembered taking what he describes the most important decision of his life a couple of years ago,when Mithun came to discuss a career in cricket. I wanted him to get medals in athletics because,personally,I was never fond of cricket. I was an athlete and wanted him to be the same. But seeing his interest in cricket,I didnt have the heart to stop him from pursuing the game, he said.
Already 17 by then,Mithun went to the YMCA nets where coach Santosh Menon was excited to have a ward with natural pace and a near-perfect action. Usually those who switch from tennis to hard-ball take time,but Mithun was quick to adapt. The other stand-out trait was his appetite for hard work. He was special, Menon said about the 62 bowler. Being tall,well-built,and a gym regular from his early days,fitness was never an issue.
Despite his rapid rise,there were times when he would get dejected with his bowling,and elder sister Rashika would be the pillar of strength. Our uncle had died and he couldnt attend the under-17 state trials because of that, Rashika said. He was really disappointed at not being picked for the team. He told me that his failure in athletics would continue in cricket too. But we gave him confidence because we knew that he could do well.
When the Test team was announced in Mumbai today,Mithun was in Indore,bowling for South Zone in the Duleep Trophy. He was excited about the elevation but he knew this was just the start of a tough journey. In the last three seasons,new pacers have come and taken wickets. But as they go into the second season,teams start reading them better. I dont want this to happen to me, he said.
