Good bye Moraad

This guy Moraad Ali Khan, I salute him for being such an honest soul.

I had called him casually a few days back when he said, "did you check your mail." I said 'no' and it was only after I came to work did I realise he had called it quits. Had Moraad been in a sport like cricket, he would have got much more mileage.

But shooting, a sport which still a lot many are struggling to still follow, is obviously not going to generate the same kind of passion among sportslovers and the media. I was, in fact, surprised Moraad has decided to pack his shotgun. I know he has a huge collection of weapons and to be putting the double trap gun into the attic would have been a hard decision.

It seems just like last week when he suddenly came out from nowhere, decided to shoot in the Nationals at the Karni Singh Ranges after a long hiatus and walked away with the double trap title. That 's Moraad for you, an analyst who will go into the minutest of details in whatever work he is doing. And even at that time, Moraad was rock sure, he was not going to be in the sport for long.

He did shoot in an ISSF World Cup three months back, but it was just an aberration. He has decided to work more for Indian shooters, be it raising sponsorship or enhancing their profiles. And if the decision to take up coaching as a new task is true, I think Moraad is making the right decision.

I have seen Moraad at the ranges for long and what impressed me most, even when he was faring badly in a practice round was that he could analyse then and there. But then, for a man who impressed with scores, medals and consistency in trap shooting first, it was not difficult when he moved to double trap. It was, after all, a conscious decision, not because he was going to be booted out of the trap team.

To be sure, not many knew what double trap was till RVS Rathore made that huge mark at the Athens Olympics. Believe me, Moraad had already educated some of his friends like me on what an exciting and thrilling sport it was. Shooting is one sport where age does not matter. You can continue well into your fifities and still do well at the National level, if not the international arena.

But the Moraad I know will never do anything half heartedly, even if it is his dream to raise funds for sportspersons so that they can do well in their quest for Olympic glory. I know for sure, Moraad can come back even a year later, train for a few weeks and again bust the orange clay targets.

Yet, for a man who has an aura, he will never have a myopic vision and will focus on the task of soon becoming the Indian shotgun coach. Where would he he stand when compared to the foreign coaches our marksmen crave for?

I am sure time will tell.