Mohammad Kaif () (born 1 December 1980) is a former Indian cricketer, who played Tests and
ODIs. He made it to the national team on the strength of his performances at the Under-19 level, where he captained the
India national under-19 cricket team
The Indian Under-19 cricket team represents the nation of India in cricket at Under-19 level. The team has won five Under-19 World Cups and has the best win percentage in ODIs (77%) among all Under-19 national teams.
The team has won the Und ...
to victory in the
Under-19 World Cup in 2000.
He retired from all formats of cricket on 13 July 2018.
Personal life
Kaif was born in a middle-class family on 1 December 1980 in
Prayagraj, Uttar Pradesh, India. He started his career from Green Park Hostel,
Kanpur
Kanpur or Cawnpore ( /kɑːnˈpʊər/ pronunciation (help·info)) is an industrial city in the central-western part of the state of Uttar Pradesh, India. Founded in 1207, Kanpur became one of the most important commercial and military stations o ...
. His father
Mohammad Tarif Ansari played for the
Railways cricket team
Railways cricket team (also known as the Indian Railways) is a domestic cricket team in India representing Indian Railways. The team's home ground is East Coast Railway Stadium in Bhubaneswar and Karnail Singh Stadium in New Delhi. The team is ...
and the
Uttar Pradesh cricket team
The Uttar Pradesh cricket team, formerly United Provinces Cricket Team, is a domestic cricket team which is based in the Indian state of Uttar Pradesh, run by the Uttar Pradesh Cricket Association. The team competes in the first-class cricket to ...
. His brother
Mohammad Saif plays for
Madhya Pradesh cricket team &
Uttar Pradesh cricket team
The Uttar Pradesh cricket team, formerly United Provinces Cricket Team, is a domestic cricket team which is based in the Indian state of Uttar Pradesh, run by the Uttar Pradesh Cricket Association. The team competes in the first-class cricket to ...
.
Kaif married Pooja Yadav, a
Noida
Noida, short for New Okhla Industrial Development Authority, is a planned city located in Gautam Buddha Nagar district of the Indian state of Uttar Pradesh. Noida is a satellite city of Delhi and is a part of the National Capital Region (NCR) o ...
-based journalist, in 2011. They have 2 children, a son named Kabir and a daughter named Eva.
Early days
As of July 2005, Kaif was one of the only five cricketers from Uttar Pradesh state to have represented India on international level. In 2009, the Indian team was well represented by Uttar Pradesh with as many as three regulars,
Suresh Raina
Suresh Raina (; born 27 November 1986) is an Indian former international cricketer. He occasionally served as stand-in captain for Indian men's national cricket team during the absence of the main captain. He played for Uttar Pradesh (UP) in ...
,
Praveen Kumar
Praveen Kumar (, born 2 October 1986) is a former Indian cricketer who bowled right-hand medium-pace. In first-class cricket, he played for Uttar Pradesh cricket team. He relied on his ability to swing the ball both ways along with line and le ...
and
Rudra Pratap Singh
Rudra Pratap Singh Bundela (r. 1501–1531) was the founder and first raja of the kingdom that became the princely state of Orchha, India, during the Lodhi Dynasty . His name is sometimes spelled Rudrapratap Singh and his last name, Bundela, i ...
in the ODI team.
He was the captain of both
Central Zone
The Central Indo-Aryan languages or Hindi languages are a group of related language varieties Spoken across North India and Central India. These language varieties form the central part of the Indo-Aryan language family, itself a part of the ...
and
Uttar Pradesh
Uttar Pradesh (; , 'Northern Province') is a state in northern India. With over 200 million inhabitants, it is the most populated state in India as well as the most populous country subdivision in the world. It was established in 1950 ...
. He also captained the national ODI team in the 2005/06
Challenger Trophy
The NKP Salve Challenger Trophy, commonly referred to as the Challenger Series, was an Indian List A cricket tournament organized by the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI). Established in the 1994–1995 season, the tournament was playe ...
in the absence of regular captain
Rahul Dravid
Rahul Sharad Dravid (; born 11 January 1973) is an Indian cricket coach and former captain of the Indian national team, currently serving as its head coach. Prior to his appointment to the senior men's national team, Dravid was the Head of ...
.
International career
Kaif made his Test debut in 2000 against
South Africa
South Africa, officially the Republic of South Africa (RSA), is the southernmost country in Africa. It is bounded to the south by of coastline that stretch along the South Atlantic and Indian Oceans; to the north by the neighbouring countri ...
in
Bangalore
Bangalore (), officially Bengaluru (), is the capital and largest city of the Indian state of Karnataka. It has a population of more than and a metropolitan population of around , making it the third most populous city and fifth most ...
soon after, and was selected in the first intake of the
National Cricket Academy
The National Cricket Academy is a cricket facility of the BCCI for the purpose of developing young cricketers who have been identified as having the potential to represent the Indian cricket team. It was established in the year 2000 and is loc ...
in
Bangalore
Bangalore (), officially Bengaluru (), is the capital and largest city of the Indian state of Karnataka. It has a population of more than and a metropolitan population of around , making it the third most populous city and fifth most ...
.
His early international career was considered patchy, with the occasional outstanding performance backed up by ordinary batting. His most famous feat was helping India chase down 326 with 87* (off 75 balls) in the 2002
NatWest Series
The NatWest Series is the name used for One Day International cricket tournaments held in England since 2000. The tournaments are sponsored by the National Westminster Bank.
2000 to 2005: triangular series
The original format of the NatWest Seri ...
Final. The effort earned him his first
Man of the Match
In team sport, a player of the match or man of the match or woman of the match award is often given to the most outstanding player in a particular match. This can be a player from either team, although the player is generally chosen from the winn ...
award.
In the series against
Bangladesh
Bangladesh (}, ), officially the People's Republic of Bangladesh, is a country in South Asia. It is the eighth-most populous country in the world, with a population exceeding 165 million people in an area of . Bangladesh is among the mos ...
in late 2004, he was named Man of the Series award for his consistency in all the three
ODIs.
Kaif earned himself a Test cap against
South Africa
South Africa, officially the Republic of South Africa (RSA), is the southernmost country in Africa. It is bounded to the south by of coastline that stretch along the South Atlantic and Indian Oceans; to the north by the neighbouring countri ...
while he was quite young at the age of 20, though soon later he was dropped from the national side because of some ordinary performances. Kaif made a good comeback to the Test side against
Australia
Australia, officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a Sovereign state, sovereign country comprising the mainland of the Australia (continent), Australian continent, the island of Tasmania, and numerous List of islands of Australia, sma ...
late in 2004 scoring two half-centuries.
He was a quick runner between the wickets and an excellent cover fielder, most notable for his agility and throwing accuracy. He holds the record for the most catches by a fielder in a
World Cup
A world cup is a global sporting competition in which the participant entities – usually international teams or individuals representing their countries – compete for the title of world champion. The event most associated with the concept i ...
match – four, against Sri Lanka in the 2003 World Cup at Johannesburg on 10 March 2003.
Middle Order
The team management tend to use him in the middle order, though his successes have almost always come playing high up – at number 3 rather on number 7. He was often seen scoring more runs while he got some time to settle on the pitch. His usual position in domestic games and in county cricket has been at number 3. But given the number of players in that mould, such as Dravid, Raina, and Yuvraj, Kaif found it difficult to play at the number 3 spot on a consistent basis. With the arrival of
Greg Chappell
Gregory Stephen Chappell (born 7 August 1948) is a former cricketer who represented Australia at international level in both Tests and One-Day Internationals (ODI). The second of three brothers to play Test cricket, Chappell was the pre-eminen ...
and
Rahul Dravid
Rahul Sharad Dravid (; born 11 January 1973) is an Indian cricket coach and former captain of the Indian national team, currently serving as its head coach. Prior to his appointment to the senior men's national team, Dravid was the Head of ...
being appointed captain, the number 3 slot was given to either
Irfan Pathan
Irfan Pathan (; born 27 October 1984) is a former Indian cricketer turned Commentator, Cricket Analyst, Actor and Dancer. He was a bowling all rounder and a member of the Indian cricket team that won the inaugural 2007 ICC Twenty20 World Cup a ...
or
Mahendra Singh Dhoni
Mahendra Singh Dhoni (; born 7 July 1981) is an Indian former international cricketer who was captain of the Indian national cricket team in limited-overs formats from 2007 to 2017 and in Test cricket from 2008 to 2014. He is also the curren ...
to accelerate the scoring rate.
In March 2006, he was recalled to the Test team in place of the injured
Yuvraj Singh
Yuvraj Singh (born 12 December 1981) is a former Indian international cricketer who played in all formats of the game. He is an all-rounder who batted left-handed in the middle order and bowled slow left-arm orthodox . He has won 7 Player of ...
for the First Test against England in
Nagpur
Nagpur (pronunciation: Help:IPA/Marathi, aːɡpuːɾ is the third largest city and the winter capital of the Indian state of Maharashtra. It is the 13th largest city in India by population and according to an Oxford's Economics report, Nag ...
. Despite top-scoring with a dogged 91 to save the Test match, he was omitted for the following match when Yuvraj had recovered his fitness. But he found a place in the four Tests in the West Indies, after Sachin Tendulkar was injured. He scored 148 not out in the second Test, his maiden Test century.
In late 2006, he was dropped from the ODI team and Test squad. In April 2008, he was recalled to the Test squad for the Second Test against South Africa but did not play.
His techniques of quick running between the wickets whilst rotating the strike but reducing considerable pressure while chasing without even playing much boundaries as well as his ability to break down the chase being in the middle-order has been observed as an adaptation of a similar approach by
Michael Bevan
Michael Gwyl Bevan (born 8 May 1970) is a former Australian cricketer. He is a left-handed batsman and a slow left arm wrist-spin bowler. He has been credited for initiating the art of finishing matches. For several years, he was considered as ...
.
Fielding
He was one of the best fielders in the Indian cricket team, along with
Yuvraj Singh
Yuvraj Singh (born 12 December 1981) is a former Indian international cricketer who played in all formats of the game. He is an all-rounder who batted left-handed in the middle order and bowled slow left-arm orthodox . He has won 7 Player of ...
. Yuvraj would be positioned on point and Kaif in the covers, and it was a tough call for the opposition to score past this pair; the standard of Indian fielding improved significantly when they were on the field. Unfortunately, many times Kaif couldn't be in the "playing 11" as Yuvraj served the purpose of an all-rounder and was a senior player in the team.
Domestic career
Kaif represented the victorious
Rajasthan Royals
Rajasthan Royals (often abbreviated as RR) are a franchise cricket team based in Jaipur, Rajasthan, that plays in the Indian Premier League (IPL). Founded in 2008 as one of the initial eight IPL franchises, the team is based at the Sawai Ma ...
in the inaugural edition of the
Indian Premier League
The Indian Premier League (IPL), also known as TATA IPL for sponsorship reasons, is a men's T20 franchise cricket league of India. It is annually contested by ten teams based out of seven Indian cities and three Indian states. The leagu ...
in 2008. He was bought for US$685,000 as an iconic player. Even though he played in all the matches for the team, he had a poor run in the series, mustering only 176 runs at an average of 16. On 15 April 2009, he was axed by Rajasthan Royals team management, which cited his poor form and cost-cutting for the omission from the squad for the 2009 season.
Kaif was bought for US$250,000 by
Kings XI Punjab
Punjab Kings (PBKS) are a franchise cricket team based in Mohali, Punjab, that plays in the Indian Premier League (IPL). Established in 2008 as the Kings XI Punjab (KXIP), the franchise is jointly owned by Mohit Burman, Ness Wadia, Preity Zi ...
to play in
2010 Indian Premier League.
Kaif was bought by
Royal Challengers Bangalore
Royal Challengers Bangalore (often abbreviated as RCB) are a franchise cricket team based in Bangalore, Karnataka, that plays in the Indian Premier League (IPL). It was founded in 2008 by United Spirits and named after the company's liquor b ...
to play in
2011 Indian Premier League, in the third round of bidding. He was the only player requested to appear for bidding for the third time. Later in an interview,
Subrata Roy of
Sahara India
Sahara India Pariwar (''pariwar'' being Hindi for "family") is an Indian conglomerate headquartered in Lucknow, Uttar Pradesh, India. The group operates business sectors such as finance, infrastructure & housing, real estate, sports, power, ma ...
stated that he requested a third round of bidding because he thought that Kaif should find a place in an IPL team.
Coaching career
In February 2017,
Gujarat Lions
Gujarat Lions was a franchise cricket team based in the city of Rajkot, that represented the Indian state Gujarat in the Indian Premier League (IPL). The team played in the IPL The team, along with Rising Pune Supergiant for two season between ...
named Kaif assistant coach of
Brad Hodge
Bradley John Hodge (born 29 December 1974) is an Australian cricket coach and former cricketer. He was a right-handed batsman who batted in the middle order, as well as a part-time right-arm off-spin bowler.
Hodge was a prolific run-scorer in ...
for
2017 Indian Premier League.
He was named the assistant coach for
Delhi Capitals
Delhi Capitals (formerly Delhi Daredevils) are a franchise cricket team based out of Delhi in the Indian Premier League (IPL). The franchise is jointly owned by the GMR Group and the JSW Group. The team's home ground is Arun Jaitley Stadium, ...
for the
2019 Indian Premier League and
2020 Indian Premier League.
Beyond cricket
Political career
He joined
Indian National Congress
The Indian National Congress (INC), colloquially the Congress Party but often simply the Congress, is a political party in India with widespread roots. Founded in 1885, it was the first modern nationalist movement to emerge in the British Em ...
and contested
2014 Loksabha election from
Phulpur in
Uttar Pradesh
Uttar Pradesh (; , 'Northern Province') is a state in northern India. With over 200 million inhabitants, it is the most populated state in India as well as the most populous country subdivision in the world. It was established in 1950 ...
, and lost to
Keshav Prasad Maurya
Keshav Prasad Maurya (born 7 May 1969) is the Deputy Chief Minister of Uttar Pradesh. He is a member of the Bharatiya Janata Party.
Life
On 8 April 2016, on the first day of Chaitra, he was appointed the Bharatiya Janata Party chief of Utt ...
of the BJP.
References
External links
Mohammad Kaif – Profile and Stats – Cricbuzz.com*
{{DEFAULTSORT:Kaif, Mohammad
1980 births
Living people
Derbyshire cricketers
India One Day International cricketers
India Test cricketers
Indian Muslims
Leicestershire cricketers
Uttar Pradesh cricketers
Central Zone cricketers
Cricketers at the 2003 Cricket World Cup
Cricketers from Allahabad
Indian cricketers
Rajasthan Royals cricketers
Punjab Kings cricketers
Royal Challengers Bangalore cricketers
India Green cricketers
India Red cricketers
United Progressive Alliance candidates in the 2014 Indian general election
Andhra Pradesh cricketers
Indian cricket commentators
Chhattisgarh cricketers
Indian National Congress politicians from Uttar Pradesh