Flashback - When Shahbaz Ahmed pulled off a 'Ben Stokes at Sawai Mansingh Stadium

A determined youngster, 1471 kilometres away from his home state, sought to manoeuvre himself along the path of realising his vision to represent the country. During his formative days in the division cricket, Shahbaz Ahmed faced charges levied by a few cricket clubs for not possessing adequate residential proof. The Cricket Association of Bengal (CAB) carried out an investigation only to give him a clean chit. The sequence of occurrences left Shahbaz disturbed. 

Sport is inscrutable. Athletes at some point in their lives encounter circumstances that could have a detrimental impact. Thousands of notions start swirling in the head. It has always been said that it is possible to infer the mental fortitude of an individual when faced with obstacles. However, certain individuals have a tendency to exult under these situations. If an objective is deeply entrenched in one's mind, then one would go to any extent to achieve it, even at the risk of facing unique challenges along the way. Having surfaced through peaks and valleys in life, the all-rounder had a point to prove. 

With 126 runs adrift of the chase and just five wickets in hand, Bengal were staring at a defeat against Rajasthan in a do-or-die game. Shahbaz Ahmed, the youngster who was tasked with steadying the ship, walked out to the centre. Batting at No.7 while pursuing a target of more than 300 on a fourth-day track is one of the toughest jobs to do. Even the word 'tough' appears to be vastly an understatement. As the saying goes, "Difficult situations bring out the best in some." Shahbaz's valiant 133-ball 61* knock had provided effective evidence of his proclivity to deliver under the toughest scenarios. A few months after his idol Ben Stokes had produced a remarkable show at the Headingley, Shahbaz was successful in emulating his performance, sealing a win over Rajasthan by hoisting six over the long-on position.

Utpal Chatterjee, Bengal's spin bowling consultant, talking about Shahbaz's resilient approach, said: “He has the will to fight… Doesn’t give up. What struck me the most is his cricketing sense. He has an idea of bowling according to the conditions,”

[The Telegraph input]