Left arm pacer T Natarajan is on cloud nine after getting called up for the ongoing Test series between India and Australia. After getting a chance to play in the limited over format against Australia, he once again got lucky to be included in the Test squad. He will replace bowler Umesh Yadav who sustained an injury in the previous match.
A proud moment to wear the white jersey 🇮🇳 Ready for the next set of challenges 👍🏽#TeamIndia @BCCI pic.twitter.com/TInWJ9rYpU— Natarajan (@Natarajan_91) January 5, 2021
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Expressing his happiness on Twitter, Natarajan shared a photo of himself donning the white jersey of the Indian Test team. He said that it was a proud moment for him and that he was ready for the upcoming challenge.
The Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) on Friday announced that the All India Senior Selection Committee has picked Natarajan to replace Yadav as he sustained a strain in his left calf muscle on the third day of Boxing Day Test in Melbourne in the ongoing Border-Gavaskar Test series. Yadav will not recover completely in time and therefore has been ruled out of the rest of the tournament. Yadav along with Mohammed Shami, who suffered a hairline fracture in his right forearm ahead of the Boxing Day Test, will return to the National Cricket Academy in Bengaluru for rehabilitation.
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Natarajan made his debut in the ODIs and T20Is after pacer Navdeep Saini got injured. He picked two wickets in the ODIs and six in the T20Is. He stayed in Australia after the series, which has finally worked out well for him as he has a chance to finally make his international Test debut here. He had already garnered a lot of praise for his performance in the IPL 2020 in which he played for Sunrisers Hyderabad.
Aussie opener David Warner, who led Sunrisers Hyderabad, said he was happy for Natarajan. Calling him a very good bowler, Warner said that he has the line and length to do well in the Test format. He added that “Nattu will be capable of doing” what pacer Mohammed Siraj did for India on his debut.
If Natarajan is included in the playing XI of the Indian side in any of the remaining matches, he would become the first left-arm fast bowler since Zaheer Khan to play for India in a Test match. The third Test between the two sides will commence from January 7 at Sydney.
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