Salim Durrani: Born With Finesse And Flamboyance

By Sumit Paul, New Age Islam 3 April 2023 "It's not your performance on the field that matters. But, it's your persona off the field and your conduct in public life that endear you to the people. Runs, wickets and catches are okay as long as you're active as a player. And how long is the career of a cricketer? You're remembered chiefly as a human and not as an athlete or a cricketer." Sir Garfield St. Auburn Sobers In His Memoirs Salim Durrani ----- So very true. Sobers vindicated the aforementioned statement with his life and astounding cricketing abilities. The same can be said about his dear friend Salim Durrani, who passed away on April 2. On many counts, the affable Salim Durrani could be compared to the game's greatest all-rounder Sir Garry as both were complete southpaws, bowling slow left-arm orthodox (though Sobers bowled fast-medium and Chinaman as well !) and batting left-handed. While Sobers was a pure genius, our Salimbhai (as he was fondly called) was an all-rounder manque. Hardly any cricketer was so universally liked and popular as Durrani was. Along with the Australian all-rounder Keith Miller and the West Indian legend Sir Garry, Salim Durrani carved a niche for himself whenever and wherever he played. Though he played just 29 Tests, slammed a hundred (104 against West Indies in 1962), took 75 wickets and scored 1202 runs, his demeanour and cavalier approach distinguished him from others. Always a gentleman, he played the game in a spirited manner and never behaved ungentlemanly on and off the field. Like Bedi, Benaud and Sobers, Salim Durrani would clap when a batsman would hit him for a boundary or an over boundary. He himself was a past master in hitting sixes on the spectators' demand. Endowed with exceptionally good looks, he acted in a couple of movies, ' Ek Masoom ' (1969) and ' Charitra ' (1973). His heroines in the movies were Tanuja and Parveen Babi respectively. Durrani had a great sense of humour as well. When a journalist told him that he shared his birthday (December 11) with Dilip Kumar and Osho Rajneesh, Salim smiled and said that he inherited a few qualities from both the celebrities. He always kept himself away from all controversies and never said anything bad about anyone. Salim Durrani always helped the newcomers and was never condescending. A self-effacing man, he liked to talk about the exploits of others in glowing terms. He was never phlegmatic in admiration. Australian great Doug Walters once said that had Salim been less carefree in his ways, he'd have been counted alongside his friend Sir Garry as the game's greatest all-rounders. But then, Salim never cared for statistics. He played for the spectators and hit sixes when they egged him on. Such nice humans are a rarity in these times. Au revoir, Salimbhai. We'll miss you. ------ A regular columnist for New Age Islam, Sumit Paul is a researcher in comparative religions, with special reference to Islam. He has contributed articles to the world's premier publications in several languages including Persian. URL: https://newageislam.com/islamic-personalities/salim-durrani-finesse-flamboyance-/d/129476 New Age Islam, Islam Online, Islamic Website, African Muslim News, Arab World News, South Asia News, Indian Muslim News, World Muslim News, Women in Islam, Islamic Feminism, Arab Women, Women In Arab, Islamophobia in America, Muslim Women in West, Islam Women and Feminism