Right-handed batting all-rounder Sakib is from Motihari, some 70 kilometres north of Bihar’s capital Patna. Without a proper stadium in Motihari, Sakib would practice at a big field called Gandhi Maidan.
Sami Ahmad | TwoCircles.net
BIHAR — Sakibul Gani wears jersey number 7, same as India’s cricketing icon MS Dhoni. On his debut in first-class cricket, Gani scored a triple century—a world record. Ajay Rohera from Madhya Pradesh held the earlier record of scoring the highest runs on debut in a first-class match when he made 267 runs in 2018-19 against Hyderabad.
Right-handed batting all-rounder Sakib shares his birthplace with the great novelist George Orwell. Both were born in Motihari, some 70 kilometres north of Bihar’s capital Patna. There is no proper stadium in Motihari and only a big field called Gandhi Maidan where Sakib, like many others, had the chance to hone his skills as a cricketer.
Sakib made 341 runs in 405 balls with two sixes and 56 fours against Mizoram at Jadavpur University ground in Kolkata in a Plate group match of Ranaji Trophy 2021-22. His Bihar team piled 686 runs for five and declared.
The former chief minister of Bihar Jitan Ram Manjhi and the current leader of opposition Tejashwi Prasad are among many others to congratulate Sakib. Tejaswhi wrote that it was a “historic moment for Bihar.”
Born on September 2, 1999, Sakib started to show his love for playing cricket by 2007. At that time, his state Bihar was still 10 years behind from getting recognition by the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI). Till 2017, Bihar players used to play from Jharkhand or other states after being de-recognised by the Indian board.
Youngest among four brothers and three sisters, Sakib was supported by his eldest brother Faisal Gani who himself is a promising cricketer and is trying his luck to get selected for the state team. Faisal is his coach and mentor. Faisal said that Sakib learnt many skills from Ajay Ratra who was his coach in the Under-23 team. Faisal also watches videos of top players to learn the techniques of batting. “The good thing about Sakib is that he is not only a naturally gifted player but a very sharp learner too. You tell him to focus on one thing and he would never forget it. That is his strength,” Faisal said.
Initially, Sakib’s parents were reluctant to allow their sons to play cricket as a career but when Faisal was invited to play for the Bihar team, they allowed Sakib to go full throttle. Sakib once came to drop Faisal at Patna to catch a flight and the seeds to play cricket was sown at that time as he thought that he too would get a chance to fly once he becomes a state cricketer.
Another of their brother Affan is also trying his luck at cricket though he has completed his graduation while Sakib has passed just his matriculation examination. Sakib had to sacrifice his education as he could not complete his examination of Intermediate (10+2) thrice. But Faisal hopes that Sakib will get to clear his intermediate exam pass Indian legend Sachin Tendulkar did through a special examination adjusted to his cricketing engagements.
Sakib’s brother Faisal Gani told TwoCircles.net over the phone from Motihari that he used to get up early in the morning, followed by a long-jog at Gandhi Maidan. “Then he used to do work out at his small gym. In the afternoon he used to pack his cricketing bag and practice for hours with me”, Faisal said.
During the Covid-19 lockdown and the only place to practice was closed for all the visitors. Sakib and Faisal were finding it difficult to sit idle. “We set up a turf wicket at home which cost around forty thousand rupees and started practising there,” revealed Faisal.
Rakesh Tiwary is the president of the Bihar Cricket Association. He is all praise for Sakibul Gani and calls him “Gudri Ka Lal.”
Talking to TwoCirles.net, Tiwary expressed hope that Sakib’s heroics would encourage not only the players to opt for cricket as a career but also force the political leaders to provide better sporting facilities for the state. “Sakib is the backbone of the middle order batting lineup of Bihar team, and I hope that Sakib would find a place in the Indian cricket team very soon,” he said.
Sachidanand Satyarthi, a local journalist and neighbour of Sakib told TwoCircles.net that Sakib was always a hard-working player since the beginning. He would see him practising most of the time. “Look at his scores of Under-14, Under-19 and Under-23 matches and in other tournaments. He is a consistent performer and needs better facilities to get at the top,” he said.
He terms his success as “a good sign for many players of big towns as Bihar lacks proper sports grounds.”
Rakesh Tiwary told TwoCircles.net that once Sakib comes back after completing his assignments at Ranaji Trophy he would be felicitated by BCA. He hoped that chief minister Nitish Kumar would also honour him.
Sami Ahmad is a journalist based in Patna, Bihar. He tweets at @samipk