Zaheer Khan’s 38th birthday presents us with a great opportunity to look back on a career that the Indian populace never quite appreciated enough.

Zaheer’s career had its fair share of ups and downs, but it was precisely his sheer indomitable spirit and bouncebackability that defined his persona.

Frequent injuries kept him from consistently dominating the sport in the manner one would expect from a bowler of his calibre, but at his best he was a craftsman with the utmost talent and a real match-winner for India.

Zaheer shot to fame on the international arena after a string of impressive performances in late 2000. His control with the new ball and yorkers with the old one gave India hope with regards to the future of their fast bowling.

The earliest highlight of his career was his demolition of Zimbabwe in 2000, when he clean bowled three batsmen with unplayable, toe-crushing yorkers.

Following a very promising start to his international career, Zaheer delivered strong performances for a couple of years. He wasn’t bad, but neither did he live up the promise of being the game-changer that many thought he would become.

He teased fans and critics with sporadic spurts of brilliance, like his devastating spell against New Zealand in the 2003 World Cup or his demolition of the Australian middle-order at Brisbane during the 2003-04 Border-Gavaskar Trophy.

After 2004, though, Zaheer went into a slump due to injuries that went on to become a hindrance in the latter stage of his career.

By this point in time, many had written off his chances of making a meaningful return to the Indian side. But after a stint in county cricket, Zaheer returned a different man; no longer a promising maverick, but a controlled, clinical operator.

Along with Shanthakumaran Sreesanth, Zaheer led India to an unexpected and historic win against South Africa at the Wanderers.

His real career-defining moment, though, came when he assumed the mantle of leading the Indian fast bowling attack on the tour of England in 2007, helping India script a momentous series victory in England.

In the five years from 2006 to 2011, Zaheer was among the top fast bowlers in the world. He was comfortable in all conditions, making India competitive abroad and dominant at home.

It’s rather fitting that people often forget Zaheer’s crucial role in India’s 2011 World Cup triumph. Ending the tournament as the highest wicket-taker, he was right up there with Sachin Tendulkar and Yuvraj Singh in consistently performing and taking India to a much-celebrated World Cup win.

In the final, Zaheer also showed fans just how far he’d come from being the mercurial talented youngster in 2003, when he began the final with an expensive over, to being a mature, match-winning bowler, starting the 2011 final with three consecutive maidens.

‘Zak,’ as he is affectionately known, is one of the best swing bowlers India has ever produced and he deserves to be remembered as fondly.