At a time when the Indian Premier League (IPL) is considered the shortest route to the national side, Gurnoor Brar’s selection could be termed as a bit of a left-field call. He sat on the Gujarat Titans bench for the full season, but the tall Punjab pacer has made heads turn with his hard length, bounce and hostility at speeds of over 140 km per hour. In different conditions – cool Dharamshala and lifeless Lucknow – not to mention, different duration of innings, he has shown that he has what it takes to thrive and is a good prospect for Team India. Six wickets in two matches is an excellent return, but the variety and nous of the 26-year-old has given Indian cricket reason for optimism.
“I didn’t get to play in the IPL but learnt a lot nevertheless,” Brar said after the second ODI against Afghanistan on Wednesday. “There were people like Ashish Nehra, Kagiso Rabada, Ishant Sharma, Mohammed Siraj and Prasidh Krishna. I observed what they were doing right and even what mistakes they committed. I didn’t get an IPL match, but got my opportunity for India, so can’t complain.”
In the Indian set-up, Brar has been lucky to work with bowling coach Morne Morkel, a tall pacer like himself. Learning new tricks has been a priority.
“I have been working on yorkers as it’s a very important delivery for the death overs, especially when you are bowling to good hitters. Morkel backs my skills and strengths, but tells me to plan when to bowl which delivery. Variation in pace is also important as bowling at one speed consistently can allow batters to get set,” Brar said.
His strength is hitting the deck and rattling batsmen with short deliveries, but in Dharamshala, he took the new ball and got swing. In Lucknow, debutant Prince Yadav took the new ball with Arshdeep Singh and Brar came as first-change.
“With the new ball, there’s a universal length which troubles most batters. Here, there was not much help in the wicket so I pulled my length back. It’s been a good start to my international career. I’m happy but not satisfied. I want to do even better going forward. I believe in myself and focus on preparation more than results – things that I can repeat every day,” the tall pacer added.
