Balaji may not be the bowler he was and his selection may well be a case of horses for courses, but his return to the big stage is a story of a person who refused to give up. Not many would have expected Balaji to survive in cricket to see this day. Being selected for a World Cup squad looked far from possible a few years back when he was literally down with several career threatening injuries. His career in the international arena started with a lot of promise, especially in the tour of Pakistan in 2004 where he played a vital role in India's Test series win. Just when one thought that India had unearthed a potential pacer, a series of injuries threatened to bring all hopes to an abrupt end. Balaji suffered a stress fracture on the back in 2005 - an injury so severe that he could not play any sort of cricket for the next three years. It seemed impossible for anyone to even imagine Balaji getting up and bowling again.
In a chat with Cricbuzz's Karthik Lakshmanan, the Tamil Nadu pacer spoke of his injury. "I underwent some injuries, but that's normal in any sporting career over 12 years. There will be a lot of setbacks because the amount of energy you spend on the field will get rubbed in on your body when you play consistently. You have to look after your body. Even if you get injured, you have to come back hard and have the hope to return and give 100% on the field again." Give 100% he did. He was surrounded by doubts and apprehensions wherever he went, but he took on the challenges and cleared the hurdles, both mental and physical.
All of that though, he assures, is a thing of the past "I'm in good shape now, I'm training under a good trainer and physio and they're looking after me well."
Each injury resulted in a change in run up and action, and along with it, a dip in pace, but he developed his own strengths accordingly. It was here that he developed various versions of a slower delivery - the off cutter, the leg cutter and the slow bouncer, and all of that came in handy, especially in the T20 format.
The emergence of IPL co-incided with Balaji's return from injury and got him back in the reckoning. It gave him (and many others) the much needed platform, and he recognized the importance of the league, comparing it to international cricket in certain aspects. "The IPL is a wonderful platform for T20s. As a player, you can realise what mentally a cricketer needs in international cricket. It's almost similar to international cricket in terms of executing under pressure. It teaches us to handle the pressure and pass it on to the opposition, that's how the IPL comes in handy."
He was fairly successful in the first 3 seasons with Chennai Super Kings, and an excellent domestic season in 2008/09 (where he emerged as the highest wicket-taker among pacers with 36 wickets) even helped him make a come-back to the national side for the tours of Sri Lanka and New Zealand in 2009. The comeback was a huge boost for Balaji, but he could not exactly set the stage on fire or show the promise he did in his early days. He faded back to the domestic circuit and continued to toil hard. The move to Kolkata Knight Riders in the 2010 auctions and the subsequent domestic season gave him another huge opportunity. Being the lead Indian pacer in the KKR team made him a regular feature in the playing eleven, something which was hard in CSK - a team which relied a lot on spin. Balaji also got a chance to share the dressing room and work with legends of the game like Wasim Akram and Brett Lee, which, he says was a 'big influence'. "Wasim Akram and Brett Lee were big influences. It is not about the coaching tips they pass on, but just being able to rub shoulders with them and share their knowledge helps you understand what you need to improve your cricket. That's what a matured cricketer will do. There is a lot to learn from them, you can learn about preparations for a game, about the conditions and about recoveries from injuries; the players who have been a part of international cricket for a long time will definitely have a better idea than you."
Balaji was impressive in the IPL 2012 in particular, and played a vital role in KKR's successful campaign, bowling at an economy of just 5.4 - the lowest by a bowler in the season. But the IPL was not the only stage where he performed last year. He was made the captain of Tamil Nadu for the 2011/12 season and he responded to the new role in style by leading his side to the finals of the Ranji Trophy. More than the results, it was the style of leadership which was impressive; Balaji was attacking in nature and positive in approach, a rarity in the Ranji Trophy. One particular example was the match against Haryana in the group stage. In a format which allows captains and teams to be content with a draw, Balaji urged his side Tamil Nadu to go for a stiff target of 146 in just 13 overs, on a two-paced final day track in Chepauk. TN fell woefully short by just 5 runs and the game eventually ended in a draw. "You have to attack and put your frontfoot hard, that's the best way to play cricket or any sport. That's very important for me and that's the knowledge I share with my Tamil Nadu team. I never emphasise on something which is defensive, I always look forward to taking wickets".
This attacking mindset, he says, has rubbed on to his bowling as well. "In any form of cricket, you have to look to take the batsman down and that's how you can succeed as a bowler. There is no way you can be defensive or on the backfoot in your approach."
It will be the first time Balaji gets to represent India in a World Cup (20 over or 50 over), and he says he never worried much about selection. "There is nothing about expectations, it is a dream to play for India and every time you play for your country, it's the highest honour possible." and, in a philosophical tone, added "I never expect anything and add pressure. You do your best and your deeds will take care of the results."
Having been through various ups and downs in his career through the last decade, Balaji neither wants to dwell on the past nor worry about the future, and rather prefers to take things as they come. "It's a huge honour to represent the nation, but I don't look at anything that's beyond my control. The simple thing is to just look at who you are and just keep enjoying the moments that cricket and life has given. There are no regrets in life or cricket, so I don't bother about things that are beyond my control. Whatever is within my control, I'll try and execute," he summed up.
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