Homework and remaining hungry crucial to success for Tahir

By Avenash Ramzan

Having a clear plan and thought process while remaining hungry for success are key attributes that fashion the career of Guyana Amazon Warriors leg-spinner Imran Tahir.

The 40-year-old South African has been a crucial component of the Warriors unbeaten run this season, claiming six wickets in three games and going at an exemplary economy rate of 5.00.

“You need to be top of your game to come and compete here against the best players in the world, so that’s my mindset. I just don’t want to walk up with no plans, so I do a lot of homework before I come to the games and the team who I’m going to play against; I look at their batters and try to bowl according to that,” Tahir told News Room Sport during an exclusive interview.

“In professional cricket or in anything you do in life I think you need to be hungry and you want to improve and I think that is always what I look to do, and I think there’s still a lot for me to learn from cricket.”

While experience is a massive element of Tahir’s game, having first played First-Class cricket in 1996, he still treats every game as his first and that enthusiasm is evident every time he gets a wicket.

“I don’t want to take things for granted. Every opportunity, as good as it is for me, is seen as my first opportunity, like I’m playing the first game for any team. I think that is where I probably focus more than anything else.”

Touching on the origin of his unique wicket celebration, which encapsulates an energetic sprint with arms outstretched, the Pakistan-born spinner said it comes from “the respect and passion I have for the game.”

“I’ve been waiting a very long time to get the opportunity (to play international cricket), and the opportunity I got from South Africa which I’m very proud of, is not one of those easy things. It was my dream to play for South Africa,” he explained.

Following his success in the CPL thus far, Tahir is now hopeful he can carry on for another year and represent the Proteas in the World T20 in Australia in October 2020.

View Imran Tahir’s career numbers: https://www.espncricinfo.com/southafrica/content/player/40618.html