Team man Faiz Fazal likely to give up T20 format

NAGPUR: Over the years, Faiz Fazal has been an integral part of Vidarbha team across all the formats. His name always figured first whenever selectors huddled together. He has led various Vidarbha teams with distinction from his junior days. However, if sources are to be believed, the Vidarbha skipper is likely to give up the shortest format.
A well-placed source in Vidarbha Cricket Association (VCA) confirmed to TOI about this development.
“At 35, Faiz realizes that he isn’t in the national scheme of things. It’s unfortunate that he has been branded as a longer-format player despite having all the shots in the book. The IPL franchises too aren’t showing interest in him. He doesn’t want to block a youngster’s place, though he can still do the job for Vidarbha in Twenty20 format. It’s highly likely that he won’t play Twenty20 for Vidarbha again,” sources confirmed to TOI.
Sources said that Faiz hasn’t been part of the warm-up matches currently going on at VCA’s Civil Lines Stadium as the preparation of Syed Mushtaq Ali Twenty20 Trophy.
“I think he has made up his mind not to play Twenty20, otherwise he would have definitely played these matches. There’s no pressure from the selectors or administrators on Faiz to give up the Twenty20 format. However, the team man that he is, it's a selfless act from Faiz. He has always put the team's interest ahead of personal milestones and that's why he has won so many trophies in his 17-year career so far," he said.
Faiz has always been a free-flowing player. During his Under-19 days, he was among the most-talented stroke-players in the country. His highest score in limited-overs cricket at the Under-19 level is 181. However, with responsibilities in the Vidarbha fold, he had to curb his natural instincts.
Faiz became the mainstay of Vidarbha batting right from his maiden first-class season in 2003. However, his aggressive side could be seen last year during the DY Patil Twenty20 tournament in Mumbai, where most of the IPL players play. While Vidarbha won two Ranji Trophy titles and an equal number of Irani Cups under Faiz’s captaincy, they haven’t done that well in one-dayers and Twenty20 formats in the last three years.
The source said Faiz is likely to continue playing one-dayers for Vidarbha.
“Vidarbha still need his experience in the 50-over format. With the emergence of the Twenty20 format, the youngsters tend to play too many shots these days. You need solid players like him, who can anchor the innings. Vidarbha are in rebuilding mode as far as shorter formats are concerned and Faiz can play a very important role here,” he said.