I was lucky that Vidarbha took me as a professional: Wasim Jaffer

Perhaps he found the world so heartless that he decided to score runs in the middle to keep himself busy. Domestic giant Wasim Jaffer recently won yet another Ranji Trophy title — this time with Vidarbha – besides excelling as a batsman but those feats did not heal the wounds that the 41-year-old sustained deep inside. The former India opener rued that in spite of scoring tons of runs and being the highest run-getter in Ranji Trophy, no team was ready to sign him in 2017.

Jaffer last played for India over a decade ago but continued to serve domestic cricket. He played for Mumbai ever since he made his debut in 1996 and captained it too. However, a few seasons ago, Jaffer understood that his time was limited in the high-profile Mumbai team since youngsters were coming up fast and he decided to shift base to Vidarbha. That was in the 2015-16 edition of the prestigious domestic tournament.

Jaffer said that he was lucky enough that he found a platform in Vidarbha team to continue with his job of scoring runs. He also worked on fitness around this time and controlled diet after a friend advised him. “I worked hard on my fitness. I was lucky that Vidarbha took me as a professional, and the rest, as they say, is history.

I had some weight issues for the last year or two. I wasn’t strict with my diet. A friend in England told me that you eat whatever you want to, but only till 6 pm. And it has helped me. I’ve lost a lot of kilos, and feel fit & healthy,” Jaffer was quoted as saying in The Times of India (TOI).

Jaffer got to play for Vidarbha after Pandit took over

However, his ordeal was not over in Vidarbha camp either. Despite being the highest scorer in Ranji Trophy, no team came up to him for signing him in 2017 and he even requested Vidarbha to hire him for free and they refused to do even that much till Chandrakant Pandit took over the reins as coach.

Jaffer said his two-year contract with Vidarbha was over and the side refused to play him any further despite him offering to play even for free. He said it was around then when Pandit was roped in by Vidharbha as their coach after Mumbai removed him and he told him his position and got the backing.

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