Evergreen Fallah recalls Maharashtra highs

PUNE: The man of comebacks has chosen not to make a comeback.
"I have given (my) all to Maharashtra. It is time for somebody to step in," Samad Fallah says following his move to play for Uttarakhand in the upcoming domestic season. "I have made so many comebacks and am sure I can make another one. But last year, without me the team won five games.
"It would be unfair for me to come back and take a young player's place."
There is no malice in the 35-year-old left-arm seamer, who is Maharashtra's leading wicket-taker in all formats and was a part of the team's many highs in the bygone decade.
"I want to play full season. I understand that Maharashtra are trying to get young boys, which I will support as I myself came through such a process," Fallah said.
"The (Maharashtra Cricket) Association has always supported me.
"The secretary, Riyaz Bagwan, has helped me as well as the seniors in the team and the coaches. I also owe a lot to Shaun Williams (the former Maharasthra coach from Australia).
"This is the right time to move on. The team has a good bunch of youngsters."
Fallah also acknowledged the support of his family. "My parents, wife Sanaa and sons Mikial (two years old) and Kiyon (four) have been pillars of strength," he said.
From the time he took a match-winning 6-49 in his Ranji Trophy debut against Himachal Pradesh in 2007, through taking an innings hat-trick against Baroda in 2009 to becoming the state's leading wicket-taker, the stocky bowler has left an indelible mark.
Coming into the team with little experience in bowling the seasoned ball, Fallah was among a group of players that was groomed for the future. He has been a vital cog in Maharashtra's milestone moments like reaching the final of the Ranji Trophy in 2013-14 and winning the Mushtaq Ali in 2009-10.
Being a true-blooded Maharashtra cricketer, Fallah points out another stat as personally fulfilling.
"During my time Maharashtra did not lose to Mumbai," the player with a sunny personality said.
The high point in the Maha derby came in the 2013-14 quarterfinal when the Rohit Motwani-led side bounced back after trailing in the first-innings to beat the multiple champions by eight wickets. Fallah claimed 3-45 in the second innings, to go with 4-103 in the first.
Fallah mentioned a few instances as his personal favourites:
Having Virat Kohli caught in the slips in a Ranji Trophy game at the Roshanara Club ground in 2011-12;
Accounting for Unmukt Chand with a classical left-arm seamer's delivery pitching on leg and hitting the off stump;
Winning the Buchi Babu Trophy, a pre-season tournament in Tamil Nadu in 2010, yet another first for Maharashtra;
Castling Rahul Dravid when he shouldered to a delivery from around the stumps in a practice game at the NCA;
And dismissing Steve Smith twice when he visited with an Australian Cricket Academy team in Mysore early in his career.