Some say that he is the best batsman to never have played for India. Amol Muzumdar’s story is a fine example of “what could have been”.
They say some things are never meant to be. There are some people who are destined to make it big, yet they never do. And this is especially true in sports. Amol Muzumdar is a prime example of this syndrome. This week when Muzumdar packed his bags from Mumbai to play for minnows Assam, it came as no surprise. Having been part of the Mumbai Ranji trophy team for almost two decades, Muzumdar knew his time was up when he wasn’t selected for the Buchi Babu tournament. “It was then I decided to move on and play for Assam,” says the man who many people thought was a better batsman than Rahul Dravid.
Muzumdar has had an illustrious, some might even say unparalleled, career in domestic cricket. Yet, the India cap has eluded him. Fate was not on his side. When in 1995-96, the Indian team was being picked for the England tour, there were two names selectors had considered — Rahul Dravid and Muzumdar. Dravid was picked, and since then has cemented his place among India’s all-time greats. And Muzumdar was left kicking his heels in domestic cricket.
But he never let his spirits weaken, and plundered runs season after season. “I don’t like to think about ‘what could have been’ scenarios and am proud to have represented Mumbai with distinction,” he says. That is something he did for a long time. He captained Mumbai to two Ranji Trophy titles and was part of seven title-winning teams.
Back in 2002, he decided to quit cricket altogether. He knew the India cap would never come his way, and says that he had stopped enjoying cricket. But cricket was an addiction, especially playing for Mumbai. Once he stepped on the field, he says, he never thought of the disappointment of not being picked for India. “My sole aim was to do well for the team.”
Muzumdar’s story could easily have been a fairytale one. He studied at Shardashram Vidya Mandir, the same school Sachin Tendulkar and Vinod Kambli attended. He then made a stunning debut by scoring 260 runs and was the toast of the town. Everyone believed they had stumbled on the “new Sachin” and Muzumdar lived up to the hype by continuing to do well. His name often cropped up at selection meetings but he always seemed to miss the bus. Former Mumbai coach Chandrakant Pandit says that Muzumdar was one of the most dedicated cricketers to have played the game. “Anyone else might have crumbled under the kind of pressure that was heaped on him,” says Pandit. It was not only the pressure of playing for India but also Mumbai, according to Pandit. He was the batsman everybody counted on when the team needed runs, and he almost always delivered. Muzumdar is the highest scorer for Mumbai in Ranji Trophy, not a simple feat if you see the kind of batsmen Mumbai has produced.
He made his debut when Ravi Shastri was still playing, and Sanjay Manjrekar, Sachin Tendulkar, Vinod Kambli and a few others were part of a strong Mumbai team. “It was difficult to hold down your place with those guys around,” he recalls. But he says it was a pleasure playing with such brilliant players, and he learnt a great deal from them.
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Now Muzumdar heads off to Assam. He says that Mumbai will always be a part of him and that he owes everything to Mumbai cricket. He still wants to play for a few more years. “The day the hunger is gone, I will call it quits,” he explains. He admits that, a couple of years ago, thinking of cricket without Mumbai was impossible for him. “Assam is a new challenge and, hopefully, will be a good experience,” he says.
Recalling his Mumbai stint, he says that there are several experiences that he will cherish: all the trophies he has won, the great players he has played with. Being a “Mumbai player” is what he will miss the most. Mumbai has been known for producing some of the most talented batsman India has seen, and Muzumdar will surely go down as one of the greatest. “Of course, I would have loved to play for the country, but I have no regrets at the end of the day,” he says. He knows he gave it all, much more than many cricketers ever did even when they represented India. But in the end it was not enough. One of the finest batsmen domestic cricket has seen, Muzumdar is now getting ready for a final hurrah, though it will be not in his beloved Mumbai but in Assam.
No story about Muzumdar can be complete without this piece of trivia. He was to bat next when Sachin Tendulkar and Vinod Kambli had their 664-run partnership. His turn never came. Little did he know that this would be the story of his life, when it came to playing for India.