The unassuming and grounded old war-horse - Rajat Bhatia is a man of few words who lets his performances on the field do the talking. An extraordinary all-rounder, his feats speak for themselves. In 74 first-class matches, he has scored 4242 runs at an average of 48.20 with 11 centuries. A member of the MRF Pace Foundation when he was young, his efforts with the ball have been equally impressive. He has picked up 88 wickets conceding just 28.39 runs per dismissal.
He was the unsung hero of Delhi's Ranji triumph in 2007. He scored a whopping 512 runs in 7 matches and also picked up 26 wickets at an astonishing 12.65 per wicket. Despite turning the match on its head with a brilliant, fighting and counter-attacking 139 in the 1st innings in the Final, which was actually the performance of the match, much of the credit went to the skipper Gautam Gambhir for his 2nd innings ton and to Pradeep Sangwan for his 9 wickets.
Bhatia spoke to Cricbuzz about how he felt about the same. "I have never looked for rewards and accolades. I just go there and give my 100% every time I turn out on the cricket field. If my contributions are recognized, I am grateful and if they are not, I take it as a part of life and move on. No point holding any grudges."
He started his career at Tamil Nadu as he had completed his education from there and had joined the MRF Pace Foundation in Chennai under the guidance of TA Sekhar. He found it a bit difficult to get admission into a Delhi College as they were not willing to grant him leaves to practise his cricket. Moreover, coming from a humble and modest background, he wanted to establish himself financially and the clubs in Chennai were offering him a good deal.
Perhaps, Bhatia was India's answer to the elusive all-rounder that the national team so desperately seeked after the retirement of Kapil Dev. He may not have had the talent the great Indian all-rounder was gifted with but certainly deserved a chance to prove his worth. Many tipped him to break into the senior Indian team at various points in the middle of 2000s but the selectors ignored this all-rounder of great potential and turned their backs on him - a true and deserving cricketer lost in the politics of the Indian Board. When asked about when he thought was the opportune time for him to make that cut to international cricket, Bhatia said, " I feel the opportune time for me was in 2001 when India toured Zimbabwe. But I was ignored. Despite performing consistently well in domestic cricket, I wasn't even selected for the Challenger Trophy and never received a call from the National Cricket Academy in Bangalore. My state Board did not back me." The disappointment was quite evident in his voice.
"The most the Indian Board has done for me is to send me to an India-A tour of Israel when I was left out from the national team's tour to Australia." Then almost changing the tone, he remarked humourously, "At least they did send me for that promotional tour to Israel. I must thank them for that. I got to see Jerusalem as a tourist and absolutely loved it - so much history and culture".
On what kept the motivation going even after the frustration of not being selected for the national team, Rajat said, "Of course there was frustration and a tinge of sadness. But there was no time and no point in regretting. I had to move forward. I love the game and that is what kept me going day in and day out. I wanted to set an example to other youngsters who if faced with a similar situation, should not give up but just continue to work hard and spread the positive energy. There is a lot of pleasure in playing domestic cricket."
Bhatia also spoke about the dwindling fortunes of Delhi after the Golden Era between 1976-1991. "Collectively, I think we did not get a bunch of good players together during this period. There were a few good cricketers but 2-3 players can't win you a game alone"
On players that have motivated him the first name he mentioned was that of Yuvraj Singh. "He was my room-mate when we played for India Under-19. I have seen many talented cricketers, but Yuvi is perhaps the most gifted. I always knew that he would come back with a bang from the illness as he has always been a fighter. When he won the World Cup in 2011, I told him that he was born to win us the Cup. Now he is desperate to prove himself and leave a mark in Tests as well. I wish him all the best"
"Of course, Sachin has been a great source of inspiration for all of us. We literally worship him. Another cricketer for whom I have a lot of admiration and have shared the dressing room with in the IPL for Kolkatta Knight Riders is, Jacques Kallis. His physical fitness amazes me. His dedication and love for the game is unparalleled. He has taken so much burden on his shoulders and come out with aplomb"
Amongst domestic players, he said he could relate to Amol Muzumdar and Mithun Manhas amongst others, who have done remarkably well for their respective states but have been unlucky having not made the cut to the senior level.
He added that his brother who played club cricket was a big source of inspiration for him.
Bhatia is from the old-school of thought and he firmly belives that Test cricket is the purest form of cricket and what one learns from playing the domestic seasons for their state sides can't be compared to the IPL or T20 cricket. He says, "A good Test player can be a good T20 player but the contrary is not always true."
He added that the experiences of the IPL and the CLT20 had been memorable and he had learnt a lot from sharing the KKR dressing room with the likes of Jacques Kallis, Brett Lee and Sunil Narine.
On what his future plans are, Bhatia replied, "I just want to enjoy my cricket and not think about anything else. I do not set any goals for myself anymore. I don't want to end with any regrets."
He also had a message for the youngsters who are passionate about cricket and want to pursue it as a career. "The first message I would like to give to all budding cricketers is to have passion for the game and then strive hard to work towards your goal. There is no substitute for hardwork. Be a good student of the game. Try and play for the same team and don't frequently change states for minor interests. Be disciplined and keep reasonable goals for yourself."
He may not have the flamboyance of Virat Kohli, the sheer gift and ruthlessness of Virender Sehwag or the aggression of Gautam Gambhir, but one thing was sure - that with a lot of hardwork, passion and determination , even the less talented mortals can dare to dream and in Rajat's case, even the so called 'ordinary' can achieve the 'extraordinary'.
May be the fortunes of Delhi would be revived, when one of her most faithful and loyal servants, Rajat Bhatia makes a comeback, for the team would be desperate for someone of his experience and guile to take them to the top again.
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