Playing a defensive shot, he pushes away a delivery down the dusty pitch. Not particularly a remarkable shot, except that Amir Hussain Lone grips the bat between his chin and his chest.

Waghama, the beautiful village in the southern part of India-occupied Kashmir, some 48kms away from Srinagar, is nestled in the lap of the splendid Phalgham Mountains, a famous tourist spot known for walnuts and apples. Walking in from the tin gate the first thing that you notice is Amir’s bat leaning against a brick wall. It is a prize from his playing days in Lucknow.

Thanks to his mighty willpower, Amir is one amazing athlete. His strength and determination has earned him much respect and admiration. During the 10th Interstate Para-cricket Tournament, he came out to bat at number seven and scored 25 runs off 18 balls. “We would be glad to invite him to come and play for the Indian para-cricket team. He is truly an amazing cricketer with no arms and he makes it all seem so easy, thought it isn’t,” former Indian captain Ajit Wadekar, president of the All India Cricket Association of the Physically Challenged, said.

What does a bowler without arms say to the umpire when coming out to bowl? Right or left-arm over? Amir has mastered just about everything without the use of arms. He eats and drinks by holding his food, utensils, cutlery, etc., between the toes of his feet. He dresses himself up also with the help of his feet.

It wasn’t always like this for him. Amir’s family owned a bandsaw which they used for making cricket bats, furniture, etc. Amir was seven years old when one day he started fiddling with its switches and blades. Suddenly his jacket got caught in the saw’s conveyor belt. He was pulled in, too, and lost both his arms in the accident. With a lump forming in his throat, his father, Bashir, recalls, “He lost five to six pints of blood that day. His aunt, Mugli, found him in a pool of blood.” The pain after the unfortunate accident is not all gone.

The inspirational story of an armless cricketer

The local army unit came to their rescue and took Amir to their camp, where they bandaged his wounds. It was a long road back for Amir, but one that he faced with determination. Three years after the accident, Amir returned to his village after treatment at the Bone and Joints Hospital Barzulla, Srinagar. His life and that of his family had changed dramatically. They often had little food as they had sold off their land to pay for his medical bills. Still they were happy he was alive.

“Many people told my parents that my life was not worth living,” Amir says. “They even told my parents to kill me as I’ll be of no use and a burden on them. But my parents didn’t pay any attention,” he adds.

While other kids went at school, Amir had to stay at home. But there he taught himself to write, holding a pen between his toes. He would write on the painted windows of his house as there were no notebooks available to him at home. After several rejections, he managed to pass class eight while writing with his feet to earn a spot at the Government Higher Secondary School, Marhama, which he would reach by walking 5km each day, as he had no money for the bus.

It was here that a teacher suggested Amir join a para-cricket team. He starred in various school and national tournaments after that. His love of cricket, and a desire to play again, has helped Amir on his path to recovery. The game instilled confidence in him and provided him with the hope that he could live a fulfilling life.

Amir tells a story about, when he was 11, going out to collect walnuts from the trees. There he found a man, who offered him three walnuts. Amir rejected his offer and asked the man to give him a stick instead. Then he taught himself how to throw the stick with his feet and ended up collecting 10 walnuts, which he exchanged for a pen at a nearby shop. Having a hunger for learning, Amir, who was asked to stay at home by one of his teachers, kept practicing how to write, holding the pen between his toes. There has never been anything that could hold him back.

Practicing for hours every day, he learnt spin bowling with his feet and to bat with his chin. “I never accepted defeat and never lost hope when nothing was going my way,” Amir says.

Perhaps Amir’s biggest supporter was his late grandmother, who helped hone his technique. “Fazi, my grandmother, used to bowl to me in the backyard and I used to play with my foot,” Amir says. “She spent hours guiding me. She would tell me she was alive to see me excel in the sport.”

“I know you won’t see me on TV playing for the national team anytime soon, but that doesn’t mean I am giving up.”

Amir remembers when he was 17, watching a duckling for hours in a pond he learnt the art of swimming. He practiced for at least a week before crossing the river Jhelum. “The struggle in itself is like a university, providing you lots of lessons to be able to live life like any other. I’ve worked hard,” Amir smiles.

Mastering the technique of batting while holding the bat between his chin and chest, bowling while gripping the ball with his toes and using his thighs to stop the ball and catch it in his lap, he earned a spot in the Jammu and Kashmir (J&K) state paralympics-cricket team in 2013. Before that he was playing for Bijbehara College. In fact he was playing for his college when he first got noticed during a friendly match at Bakshi Stadium, Srinagar. Now he is captain of the India-occupied Kashmir’s state para-cricket team.

“I know you won’t see me on TV playing for the national team anytime soon, but that doesn’t mean I am giving up. I will be working hard for it and if Allah wills, my dream of playing for my country may also come true one day. I’ve been on DD Sports when we were in Lucknow for the 10th National Championship for Physically Challenged Players in December 2015,” he smiles.

That event was organised by Indian Cricket Federation for Disabled (ICFD) and its founder, A.W. Siddiqui, has previously ensured that Amir does not have any sort of problem in terms of monetary support. ICFD helps physically-challenged cricket players who have a permanent disability of more than 75pc.

“ICFD is the national body and is under process in affiliation with the Board of Cricket Control in India, which includes 25 states including union territories. We organise national tournaments, coaching camps for physically-challenged cricketers. We want players to connect with us. Amir has set an extraordinary example for all of us,” says A.W. Siddiqui.

The writer is a freelance sports journalist from India-occupied Kashmir.

Twitter: @TahirIbnManzoor

Published in Dawn, Sunday Magazine May 15th, 2016