Hong Kong and Irfan 'can star on bigger stage'
Player-of-the-tournament Irfan Ahmed - and Hong Kong - were the talk of the town yesterday with the former Australia batsman Dean Jones suggesting that Indian Premier League franchises should take a serious look at the Hong Kong star.
Jones, who played 52 tests for Australia, was one of many people taken with the skills of the 19-year-old Irfan, who starred with both bat and ball as Hong Kong booked their first-ever appearance in the final of the Karp Group and Unirich Jewellery Hong Kong Sixes.
'I'm very impressed with Irfan,' said Jones, who was in Hong Kong last weekend as part of the Ten Sports commentary team. 'I have no doubt that some of the IPL franchises should take a look at him.'
Jones is not the first former illustrious cricketer to say that Irfan - a Hong Kong international - should consider moving overseas so that he could improve his game and fortunes. Last year, the Pakistan test veteran Ramiz Raja suggested the same thing after Irfan excelled at the Sixes.
'Irfan has good hands and a great eye and he bowls really well, too,' Jones said. 'Of course he has got to go out and learn to bat on turf wickets, but from what I have seen of him, I have been very impressed. He has the signs of being a dangerous player.'
In Hong Kong's unbeaten run to the final, Irfan aggregated 156 runs from six outings - being dismissed only twice - and also bowled superbly, conceding only 76 runs from six overs while taking four wickets. He also had a run-out.
'I would love to get into the IPL and this was a good stage to show what I can do. It has been good for me and for Hong Kong, too,' Irfan said.
While agreeing that Irfan was an exciting talent, former India captain Anil Kumble said that it would be very hard for an IPL team to consider the Hong Kong teenager.
He said: 'You must remember that IPL teams can have only four foreign players in their teams and it will be a huge ask for Irfan to supersede any of the bigger names and more established international stars.'
Kumble, who captained the Royal Challengers Bangalore in the 2009 IPL as well as the Champions Twenty20 tournament last month, said it would be tough for Irfan to break in to a highly competitive league where players get huge contracts. Kumble was signed for three years in 2008 - the inaugural year of IPL - for a massive US$500,000 per year.
'He looks talented, but you really can't judge a player on one over. Hong Kong have done well, but you must remember that we are playing on an artificial wicket, where the ball comes on nicely and as expected,' Kumble said.
The leg-spin legend, who holds India's record of 619 test wickets, said that Hong Kong should consider playing more Twenty20 and 50-over matches away from home to improve their standard.
'Hong Kong have looked very good this weekend,' Kumble said. 'They now have to go overseas and play the longer format more on turf wickets. That is the only way they can take the next step up.'
Hong Kong have done well on the international scene in the past 18months. They won the ACC Trophy in Malaysia when defeating the United Arab Emirates, and also reached the penultimate qualifying round for the 2011 World Cup.
The Hong Kong Under-19 squad, of which Irfan is a key member, also qualified for next year's ICC U-19 World Cup in New Zealand by grabbing one of six berths available at the qualifiers in Toronto in September.
This weekend, in the shortest form of the game, they defeated South Africa, Australia, New Zealand, England and Sri Lanka to show that the underdog has a big bite.
It left Jones impressed. But as Kumble pointed out, it is hard for an outsider - Irfan and Hong Kong - to make their mark on the international stage as the odds are against them.
