Wednesday, November 28, 2012

Shahid Akbar - Hyderabad's Elegant Batsman Is No More

There are some - a rare few - cricketers who bring a sense of awe into the room when their name is mentioned. They command a respect - unconditionally, unequivocally and spontaneously - from everyone around. Their talent shines so bright that no one can ever question their genius, and their personalities are so large that even when they stay within themselves, they occupy a large space outside. People travel long distances to see such players play and pray that these players perform more and more so that we mortals are raised from a platform of the normal, average and mediocre, to the level of artistry and genius. These players bring a soft magic into our lives that remains with us deep within, like a sigh of longing.

Shahid Akbar was one such. He died yesterday after a long illness.

Shahid was a stylish left-handed batsman who played for Hyderabad and for State Bank of India. Handsome, enigmatic, polished, cultured, mercurial, graceful and much more, Shahid wielded the bat with as much elegance as any left-hander could, and was fully capable of tearing apart any bowling side on his day. I was a schoolboy when I first played against him but as I knew him over the years, I always knew that there was something about this quiet, wound-up, brooding man that marked him as different. Not just as a cricketer but as a a person. You could not ignore people like him. Such was the strength of his dark, melancholic personality.

I'd heard much about the legend that was Shahid from many sources before I actually saw him or met him. i had heard about his talent, his batting and about himself. I never saw him play a big innings unfortunately, perhaps one 50 against us, which showed glimpses of his footwork, eye and timing. He was a busy player and a hard hitter as well working the ball away on the on side, unleashing straight drives and cover drives in an explosion of energy. His team SBI was probably the strongest batting side in our leagues in the mid-eighties. Their batting order started with Abdul Azeem and Shahid, two of the most destructive openers we had in Hyderabad those days, followed by test cricketer Azhar, Azmath, Khalid Abdul Quayyum, Arun Paul and Kamaraju. That batting order was enough to give any bowling side the creeps.We played against them many times but one particular match that I remember was in 1985 or so, when I was playing for MCC and we put SBI in to bat on a drying wicket at Gymkhana. We got this superb batting outfit for 202 and I got Shahid, Azmath and Khalid out that day. Azhar got a masterful 86 else we would have got them for much lesser. But I was and still am proud of the fact that I got Shahid out that day, caught at short mid wicket by Sanjay.

An excellent fielder who prowled like a leopard on the field, specially the covers, Shahid was polite and cordial and always had a good word for me. One other game when I was trying to bowl faster than what I was capable of at the RRC, I remember Shahid telling me from the non-striker end - 'What Hari, you're bowling like Joel Garner today?'. He would congratulate me on good performances in other games, had a smile (that famous crooked smile of his which was very warm) and a kind word and you never expected anything more from a senior player those days. I'd always seek him out and say Hello to him in our games, something that I did not do with many others.

After those playing days in the eighties I lost touch with Shahid. I heard from others that he had quit the SBI job, that he had become a recluse and had some health issues. I remember Vidyuth telling me that every year Shahid would call the Jaisimha residence on New Year to wish them a Happy New Year, right till the end. After all Vidyuth's father, the late M.L. Jaisimha, was Shahid's first Ranji captain. More recently I heard that he had fallen seriously ill and was in coma. My colleague Riaz told me that Shahid was not in good shape. From whatever I heard, it did not sound good. He was alone more or less in those last days - out of choice they say. I believe the Hyderabad Cricket Association helped out with the medical bills which was a fine gesture on its part.

Yesterday we heard the news that he had passed away. Sometime before he passed away, at the Uppal ground, Hyderabad's Ranji team completed the formalities against the much fancied Mumbai. I am sure that Shahid would have been pleased with the way the young Hyderabad side played against Mumbai under pressure.

Shahid Akbar moves on, leaving behind those fine memories, and some magic to cling on to. May his soul rest in peace. 

11 comments:

Fatima Hadi said...

my cousin was so much more to all of us. rest in peace my dearest brother. you are so sorely missed.

P. Kaneshkk Naidu said...

With the kind of schedule now-a-days we are generally starved of information on achievements of our past players.
By reading your article I sincerely feel that we have lost one of the great personalities

May Shahid Akbar sir's soul rest in peace.

Anonymous said...

I can't still accept the fact that Baba's no more and I have to stop hoping for one fine day to hear his lovely voice over the phone every day and every night.
Miss u very badly Dearest Baba!!
Syeda Akbar

Harimohan said...

Fatima, my deepest condolences to you and your family. Shahid will be missed. But the fragrance of the essence of his life will always be alive.

Harimohan said...

Syeda, My deepest condolences to you on the great loss. One cannot undo what is but the process of life, but one can keep the memory alive, the essence of what Shahid was, through the thoughts, acts and words he has left behind. Wishing that you be given the courage to face up to this adversity.

Unknown said...

May the mercy of Allah be upon him, May Allah in his infinite mercy bless his soul with forgiveness and admit him in the eternal bliss of paradise. May Allah also give you & your family strength & patience...

Nadd

atul karia said...

shahid akbar and i were class mates from kindergarden at nundy school where his mum use to be teacher we weregood friends played lot of cricket together for aliyajr collage with likes of khalid rest in peace my dear friend atul karia nairobi kenya

Arun Dev said...

I had the good fortune of playing with him in Dharwar, Aligargh, when we won the Rohington Baria Trophy in Dharwar and runner up to Delhi University in Alighar, a very humble and a dedicated cricketer. He would during net sessions continue to request me to watch if he was seeing the ball all the way till he saw it hit the middle of the bat. What a great cricketer. I always thought he would play for india. We were in Jammu Tawi to play the Vizzy trophy and Shahid and Kapil Dev were picked to play for Rest of India ( i think) against Bombay. Kapil clicked and went on play for India and Shahid failed in that match. He was instrumental in winning the Rohington Baria Trophy for Osmania Univeristy in 1976-77 season. the last time that Osmania won the trophy. I was lucky to have partnered with him and score 81 runs as a night watchman. He was a very humble, honest and a thorough gentleman. May his soul rest in peace.

Harimohan said...

Great hearing from you Arun Dev. Shahid was special alright. Where are you placed these days? Maybe we could catch up and I could get some information of that famous Rohinton Baria win? Thanks for writing and sharing.

Anonymous said...

INNALILAHE WOH INNA ILAIHI RAJEOON

Unknown said...

I was an ardent follower of national cricket during my younger days, especially Ranji trophy, Irani, Duleep etc. I just had a liking for Shahid Akbar (and one other cricketer who played along side Shahid but i am not getting his name) and followed his cricket through news papers as no TV at that time covered national cricket. I never had an opportunity to see his photo as it never appeared in news papers in our region (i belong to north India). Suddenly, after many years it appeared in my mind to get to know about Shahid sb. Today is a very sad day for me since one who i admired all through is no more. There were so many cricketers of fame but i had a special liking for him, i still don't know why? My condolences are with his family. May his soul rest in peace. haqislamul@gmail.com