This Pakistani scribe always plays a blinder

[sonicboom]

This Pakistani scribe always plays a blinder

Mar 10, 2011, 12.35am IST


PALLEKELE: There's a Sania who became the inspiration for many in tennis. There's another Sania who could be a role model for many. This Sania is from Pakistan. She is not a sportsperson, but a sports journalist. But there is something that makes Sania Zaidi special. She is visually challenged. You wouldn't believe that if you saw her diligence and enthusiasm at work.

So how did she make it till this point? "I owe everything to my mother," she says, with a choked voice. "She made sure that like her other three children, I got to do in life what I wanted to do. If I want to know how the World Cup trophy looks like, she will make a replica of that from paper and make me feel it. Through her, I have felt the world," she says.

Sania uses a special laptop and mobile to help her journalistic duties. It must have been tough for her to convince people about her capability. "In Pakistan, there is little encouragement for me. Even the Pakistani cricketers haven't been too receptive to me. They will always be busy whenever I talk to them, but in reality, I know why they are avoiding me," she laments. Not all have been uncooperative, though. "Mohammad Yousuf gave me a huge interview just after he converted to Islam. I have met Sachin Tendulkar too. He is a very humble human being, and met me nicely," she says.

Her 'favourite', though, is Sri Lankan captain Kumar Sangakkara. "When I met him in 2004, he told me to come the next day as he had something in store for me. Next morning, he gifted me a T-shirt autographed by the entire Lankan team. He is, without doubt, my favourite cricketer," she says. "I have covered other sports too and want to interview my namesake Sania Mirza once," she reveals.

It's interesting to hear what got Sania hooked onto cricket. "Sanath Jayasuriya, who was the first cricketer I interviewed, caught my imagination with his explosive batting in the 1996 World Cup," she recalls, before slipping in a bouncer. "The other thing was Vinod Kambli crying after India lost the 1996 World Cup semifinal at Kolkata. In sports, one shouldn't cry if you lose!" she says, before bursting out laughing.

The parents had encouraged her to pursue her passion. "My father got me a cricket pitch from England and a ball with which I would play with my brother," she says.

Sania wants to travel to India to cover the World Cup final in Mumbai, but her husband, Khwaja Mohamad Khan, who accompanies her, hasn't given her the permission to do so. "He feels it is unsafe to go to India. I hope he relents," she says, with a smile.

A lecturer in Mass Communication in a university in Multan, Sania will be returning soon as her leave is about to end. "We have just completed a year of our marriage and I want to take her to Thailand to celebrate it," the hubby Khan chirps.

"I don't want to go. I want to cover more games," she says.

It is this admirable passion for the game that has driven Sania past her obstacles. "I love the fact that I can feel the world. It's a small life and its good to do something that makes people appreciate you."

Sania is enjoying every moment of her amazing 'innings'.

This Pakistani scribe always plays a blinder - The Times of India