'Being a left-arm pacer is an advantage', says T Natarajan
Fast bowler Thangarasu Natarajan, on Sunday, said that being a left-arm pacer works as an advantage for him as there aren't many bowlers in Indian cricket who can with that angle. Natarajan, who was initially chosen as a net bowler for the gruelling Australia tour, went on to represent the country in all three formats of the game eventually. Here is what he said.
"The main reason for me playing all the formats has to go towards my practice and all my coaches, they would have known about my strength in the formats so they gave me a chance to play in all formats. I am a left-armer so that works as an advantage for me," said Natarajan while addressing a press conference on Sunday.
The last few months have been noteworthy for Natarajan. He traveled to Australia as a net bowler on the back of his astonishing IPL run. He was then added to India's ODI squad as cover for Navdeep Saini, and delivered a match-winning performance in the final game. Eventually, Natarajan received his maiden T20I cap from Jasprit Bumrah, after replacing the injured Varun Chakravarthy.
Natarajan was finally drafted in the injury-hit Indian side for Brisbane Test. He became the first Indian cricketer to make his international debut across formats on the same tour. Interestingly, he made it to all formats in 44 days, the fewest an Indian has ever taken. He also became the first left-arm seamer to feature in Tests for India since 2013/14 (Zaheer Khan).
Natarajan played a key role as India clinched their first-ever Test victory at the Gabba. He finished with 3/78 in the first innings, the second-best figures in debut Test innings by a left-arm pacer after RP Singh (4/89 vs Pakistan, 2005/06).
Following the historic victory, Natarajan received a grand welcome upon reaching his native village, Salem. Reflecting on the support, he said, "I will try to support the Salem cricket association as much as I can. It is because of people's support that I am here. People know how I came here, if one does hard word he can achieve anything."
