On 9th September 2017, the Trinbago Knight Riders were crowned the CPL 2017 (Caribbean Premier League) Champions, when they beat Chris Gayle’s St. Kitts & Nevis Patriots in the final, by 3 wickets. We at Read Scoops were lucky enough to talk to one of the members of that winning TKR squad – Hamza Tariq.
For all those who don’t know the man in question, Hamza Tariq is a Canadian national cricketer ?? of Pakistani descent that has been around since quite a while, known to be one of Canada’s most promising talents. An attacking batsman, Hamza has a pleasing technique that could be compared to some of the greats of the game.
Firstly, I (Dwayne Fernandes) would like to congratulate Hamza on winning the CPL T20 trophy with his team TKR, and would also like to thank him for taking the time out to talk to me.
Hamza Tariq Profiles:
HAMZA TARIQ’S EXCLUSIVE INTERVIEW WITH READ SCOOPS:
Q1. To begin with, tell us about a few cricketers that have inspired you to positively change your game, growing up as a wicket-keeper batsman.
Answer: Playing for Canada, there have been a couple of Canadian cricketers/teammates who I have idolized. Firstly, there’s Rizwan Cheema, who has helped me quite a bit with my hitting technique and also helped me learn a lot about how to be aggressive in the death overs, and clear the boundary with ease. I’ve always looked up to Rizwan and I play like him too, being naturally aggressive.
Secondly, there’s pace bowler Khurram Chohan, who has helped me a lot mentally and taught me how to approach the game and how to think on my feet. Khurram has helped me throughout my career with Canada, and he still does sometimes (now retired). He’s always there for me whenever I need guidance. These two guys have had a huge impact on my career at the national level.
International players who have impacted my game have to be Brendon McCullum & Hashim Amla. I met these guys last year in my first season with TKR (Trinbago Knight Riders ??). McCullum is someone I’ve looked up to because he’s aggressive, just like me. With Hashim bhai, I’ve seen the opposite approach to batting, where you can be calm, relaxed and never panic. I’ve learnt a lot from him just by talking to him and watching him bat in the nets.
All these guys have contributed to me becoming a better batsman and a better cricketer.
Q2. Originating from Karachi, you have cricket running through your veins. While there are better opportunities in that part of the world (India/Pakistan), how much tougher is it to progress through the ranks playing for a country like Canada?
Answer: You’ve put it perfectly. On one hand, people think it’s the easier option to come to this part of the world and represent countries like Canada or USA in cricket, but on the other hand, there’s not much training and coaching facilities available here, and very limited opportunities. Basically, you have to do everything on your own as a cricketer coming out of a region like North America. I’ve learnt that you have to grab every opportunity you get; whether that’s one in 5 years or ten in 5 years. You have to take up the challenge and say to yourself, “I’m here and I’ve got to do well”.
Hamza made his debut for Canada way back in August 2010, but since then has only managed to play 7 ODIs and 3 T20Is. While he has loads of experience and has even captained the national team, his stats won’t show much as Canada unfortunately lost their ODI status in 2014, after poor performances in the World Cup qualifiers.
Since the World Cricket League division structure was formed, Canada didn’t do very well, slipped to Division 2 in 2015, and were further relegated to Division 3 in 2017. After losing their international status, there was no prospect of a lot of big-stage international games for Canada.
- Hamza Tariq’s ODI Best – 71(70) vs Scotland in 2014.
Q3. What did you think was the future of your cricketing career when Canada lost its ODI status in 2014?
Answer: I was a part of the team when that happened. It was probably one of the lowest moments in my cricketing career, as well as for the entire national team. To be honest, I had no clear vision or plan on how I was going to take my cricket forward from that point. I had to sit down and ask myself what my options were, and one of my them was to finish my degree in Accounting, which I did.
However, I kept on playing whatever I could – international games, local cricket, tournaments in USA, etc. Basically, I kept giving myself a chance; I wanted to be ready if any opportunity did come along. The ICC Americas opportunity then popped up, where a team of North & South American cricketers had to be made, to take part in the regional tournament in the West Indies. From that ICC Americas team, 6 would further go on to play in the CPL. I’m happy that I didn’t lose hope. I kept playing and had a positive attitude towards the situation, waiting for that one opportunity. I’m grateful and blessed that I got that chance, and now I’m part of a team that has won the CPL.
In life, even if I see things are not going my way, I still like to keep pushing, just to give myself that chance to get a single opportunity and see where I can go from there.
Q4. You captained a couple of games against Sikandar Raza‘s Zimbabwe A team earlier this year and ended as the highest run scorer for Canada – 143 runs. Have you ever felt you could contribute more up the order? Ever been tempted to push yourself higher than #7 or #8?
Answer: For that series, I was actually the stand-in captain as the captain was coming in later. Yes, I did want to bat up the order and had a chat with the coach and the management, but they had come up with a plan and I didn’t want to tinker too much with it.
Going into a Division 3 tournament in Uganda, the coaching staff had come up with this plan; I didn’t want to be too aggressive and change a pattern that was working in favour of the team. The team wanted me to do the job of a finisher, along with Rizwan Cheema and we did that well in each game. Although batting up the order is my strength and what I prefer, the current plan was working well for the team and that’s all that matters. We made it to the finals in that tournament and were promoted to Division 2.
The Hamza Tariq story shows us that staying positive in even the worst situations can sometimes pay rich dividends, as this man managed to prove himself even without having many opportunities. From having almost no cricketing future, he landed up standing next to Dwayne Bravo and lifting the CPL 5 trophy in celebration.
Let’s not forget the importance of his sensible knock of 18(21) in the CPL final. While the team was in trouble at 12/2, Hamza walked in and steadied the ship even as the famous Bravo brothers only managed a total of 1 run among the two of them.
Q5. Your involvement with TKR and being there among big names like Dwayne Bravo while lifting the trophy would’ve been a proud moment for you and for Cricket Canada as a whole. Talk us through that entire experience.
Answer: You know, just before I got picked for the CPL last year, a reporter called me and asked me my chances of getting picked. I said, “Probably 1%”. He then asked me which franchise I preferred to play for, and I said that I’m not in a position to pick a team at the moment, but if I had to choose, I would like to play for the Trinidad & Tobago team, even though I knew there was no chance of being picked. However, the very next day, I was picked by Trinidad, and it was a very special moment for me.
In the 2016 season, my only goal was to see where I stand among the rest, gaining knowledge, information and experience from guys like McCullum (Brendon), Amla (Hashim), Bravo (Dwayne), Munro (Colin), Sunil (Narine) and the rest of the guys, so that if I had to come back to the CPL in 2017, I should be ready and prepared for the same challenge. Last year, I didn’t get a game but I was very lucky and am thankful to the TKR management that they saw something in me and retained me even without getting a game.
I came back this year and scored a few runs in the warm up games and they were discussing the possibility of playing me in league games as a top order batsman. However, that didn’t work out. Later, I was lucky once again to be picked to play the semi final, and then the final as well. I’m thankful to skipper Bravo and the coach, who kept the faith in me and believed in me for those two big games. When you play and then win the trophy, it’s a completely different and special feeling. Standing next to Bravo and lifting the trophy was magical and a dream come true, really.
Q6. What is your favourite innings till date?
Answer: There are a few to be honest. I’ve played more cameos than long innings due to the number I have batted at most of the times. One innings in particular that sticks in my head was the innings that probably got me into the CPL. It was an ICC Americas game against the Jamaica Scorpions, in West Indies’ domestic tournament (Nagico Super50).
It was just before CPL 2016 and I went to that tournament and fell sick, missing the first three games. With three games to go, I played two, and failed in both – scoring 21 and 7. I knew my chances of getting picked by any CPL franchise were next to impossible now. I had to do something special. In the last game, we batted first and I went out to bat in the 45th over and smashed 35 in just 13 balls. That innings gave me a lot of confidence and there was a lot of positive energy from my teammates and coaching staff. That is one innings I can never forget as it helped me get into the CPL.
After CPL 2016, Hamza dislocated his left shoulder during a training camp. He fought hard and was back in action until he dived in the CPL 2017 final and hurt the shoulder once again. Fortunately, it wasn’t too bad. The physio advised him around 2 weeks of rest, but he had to miss the 2017 AUTY Cup against USA.
Q7. What are your future plans now? More of CPL and trying to break into other global T20 leagues? Or is national cricket still of higher significance?
Answer: I think the two are balanced for me at the moment. I was a part of the team when Canada lost its international status in 2014 and I feel a lot of responsibility to make sure we get it back. My goal is to get Canada back to where it was a few years back, and also to the World Cup stage. Of course, while playing for and concentrating on Canada, I want to keep playing CPL and probably get into BPL, PSL, Shpageeza Cricket League and all these other leagues. I think if I could somehow land an IPL contract as well, there would be nothing like it.
Earlier this year, Chirag Suri became the first person from UAE to land an IPL contract, while Mohammad Nabi & Rashid Khan from Afghanistan also enjoyed a good season at IPL 2017, so it’ll be great to wait and see if Hamza becomes the first man from Canada to get to the Indian T20 league!
Q8. A team like Afghanistan has done so well in a short span of time as compared to Canada, who have been around since a very long time. How bright do you think the future of the Canadian cricket team is? What are your expectations?
Answer: I’ve played against all associate nation players and at the CPL, I’ve played with full-nation players as well. What I’ve noticed is that we don’t have any shortage of talent in Canada. We’ve always had talent but what we’ve lacked is someone to manage us well and hopefully, if a few things go right at the top management, you’ll see us back soon. It will certainly take some time, but we will be back.
I want to be back and playing cricket for Canada at the World Cup. The 2019 World Cup is still not out of our reach. If we win our tournament in February 2018, we go into the World Cup qualifiers and anything is possible if we keep our hopes high and work hard. If not, then the 2023 World Cup for sure.
I’d like to say that Afghanistan has put in a lot of handwork and a lot of effort. Most of the players are very good friends of mine, and seeing them come out of nothing to where they are right now is just great. Afghanistan doing well and their players getting IPL contracts is very nice to see.
18-year old Rashid Khan has been creating a name for himself all around the world with his leg-spin, gaining T20 contracts all over the world. Hamza mentioned that while Rashid is a great talent, he is a gem of a person as well.
Q9. Any talented young cricketers to watch out for from Canada?
Answer: There are quite a few, but a couple of talented youngsters to watch out for from the U-19 circuit are:
- Bhavindu Adhihetty – Left handed opening batsman. He debuted for us in the last tournament. He’s very good, technically sound, and has a good head on his shoulders.
- Rommel Shahzad – Off spinner who played for the Canada U-19s and hopefully we’ll get to see him soon in the national team as well.
Q10. Message for young aspiring cricketers.
Answer: The only message I would like to give youngsters around the world is a message that I have been sticking to all my life – ‘you should never look for shortcuts’. You always have to work hard and stay positive. One way or the other, you will someday get rewarded for your hard work. As long as you maintain a positive approach to your game, you will always reap the benefits of working hard.
Once again, I would like to thank Hamza Tariq for taking time out to make this interview possible. He has been extremely cooperative, and we at Read Scoops wish him the best of luck for his cricketing future, both with Cricket Canada, as well as with various T20 leagues around the globe!
– Dwayne Fernandes, Read Scoops
(Twitter – @dwayneeeboy, Instagram – @dwayneeeboy)
