Old wine in a new bottle

Mohsin Khan picked up 30 wickets in seven matches at an average of 16.80 average, an economy of 2.84, and a strike rate of 35.40 in Karnataka’s triumph.

Bengaluru: At a time when Karnataka’s penchant for producing world-class spinners was beginning to seem like a distant memory, those with their ears to the ground kept bringing up one name. 

They had rated Rohit Kumar AC, Hardik Raj, K Shashi Kumar and Dheeraj Gowda highly too, but the name they brought up most was plying his wares with Karnataka’s Under-23 team in the Col CK Nayudu Trophy, while the aforementioned four went on to make their Ranji Trophy debuts this season.

Mohsin Khan was not fast-tracked to the senior side. Instead, the off-spinner was expected to do his bit as Karnataka pushed for their maiden title in the Under-23 tournament. 

Mohsin picked up 30 wickets in seven matches at an average of 16.80 average, an economy of 2.84, and a strike rate of 35.40 in Karnataka’s triumph. Save for the scalp tally, these are not exceptional numbers, but data doesn’t always reveal what former cricketers and experts have an intuition for.

All of them insisted that he’s a throwback off-spinner. 

This is not to say he’s the finished product or that he’s going to make it big or even beyond what he has already done. This is only to say that he has the minutiae of things which seasoned cricketers and enthusiasts look for when they predict potential. 

Yere Goud, the coach of the team, took a moment before saying: “Yeah, the boy is a serious prospect. To survive in this climate as an off-spinner is very hard, but he relies on all the old tricks to stay relevant. It’s a nice throwback. He has some things to work on, but he has what it takes.”

When asked if he recalls a spell of Mohsin’s which helped him forge an opinion, Goud speaks of the 20-year-old’s debut. He picked up 7 for 47 in the first innings against Himachal Pradesh and added a four for 24 in the second innings. “… that was on a seamer-friendly wicket. He was so good that day,” recalls Goud. 

Mohsin remembers it too. Only, he thinks he could have done more. “Had I taken my cricket seriously earlier than when I did (15), maybe I would have been better, but I don’t have time to regret these things. I have to put in the work,” he says. 

Mohsin started his career as a batter when he was 11-years-old under Imtiaz Ahmed. He then moved to the Karnataka Youth Cricket Academy where Karnataka Ranji Trophy spinner Abrar Kazi took him under his wing.

“He’s simply brilliant,” says Kazi. “He was a bit hesitant to learn early on in his career but since he decided to play seriously, he’s been brilliant. He has a lovely trajectory and knows what he’s doing. He was tough to get through early on but once he realised his worth, he has been really good."

"He's also a really good bat, maybe someone who could replace K Gowtham in the future," he adds.

Asked about what makes Mohsin click, Kazi breaks it down. “He’s tight with his lines and lengths and he’s always probing. He doesn’t try too many things even though he has variations. He keeps it simple but his biggest strength is his trajectory, it’s not too loopy but it’s not flat either. It’s perfect, you can neither go forward nor back. And he puts a lot of revolutions on the ball, that’s always great,” he says. 

Nevertheless, Mohsin is working on his arm ball, a carrom ball and the under-cut to add to the arsenal. Purists, however, will want him to remain true to what comes naturally to him. Even Karnataka senior team bowling coach Mansur Ali Khan hoped he would do that. 

Mohsin has another take on it. “I have to add things to my bowling or it becomes hard to survive in this sport, but I know what my strengths are and I know why it’s important to hold onto them,” says the Newton Pubic School product.

Maybe he will. Maybe he won't. Maybe he can't. Irrespective, it's nice to feel nostalgia every once in a while.