Indian left-arm bowler Barinder Sran, who has been included in the squad for the tour against Zimbabwe, hopes to make the most out of his second chance. The pacer, who made his international debut in January against Australia, was ignored soon after, following mediocre performances in a few games.
Sran, who impressed by scalping a three-wicket haul on his debut, is already being looked up to as a key bowler for the team. After a month-long rehabilitation at the National Cricket Academy following a niggle in his left shoulder, he made his way into the Sunrisers Hyderabad team and was instrumental in helping them lift the trophy this season.
A string of injuries had kept him away from the game for three years, and he was picked by the Rajasthan Royals team in 2015 and played only one match for the team that year.
With the veteran all-rounder and SRH teammate, Yuvraj Singh, calling him a Zaheer Khan in the making, Sran's performance in the IPL has brought him back into the Indian team. He picked up 14 wickets in 14 matches, his best being 3/28 in the group match against Mumbai Indians.
“The IPL was great for me and my team. After Ashish Nehra got injured, the responsibility was on me to give critical breakthroughs to the team,” he told Hindustan Times.
Also read: Barinder Singh Sran: 10 things to know about the Sunrisers Hyderabad Pacer
The wicket of Virat Kohli in the final
Dismissing the bigwig Virat Kohli in the final, Sran earned praises from his skipper David Warner. “I will never forget how our captain David Warner ran up to me when I had bowled Virat Kohli in the final. He said, ‘mate you have won us the Cup’.”
SRH were a bowling heavy side this season and had Bhuvneshwar Kumar, Mustafizur Rahman and Nehra along with Sran working in tandem to wreck havoc on the opposition.
“As I was coming off a shoulder injury, I was a bit worried. But after a couple of games I settled in. The management (which paid Rs 1.2 crore for him) said I had stepped up after Nehra pulled out due to injury. I am happy I didn’t let them down. I hope, in Zimbabwe, I can bowl just the way I did on my India debut in Australia,” the 23-year old added.
“The pitches in Zimbabwe will be soft and I will have to adjust my length. I can’t let this chance go."
Sran, who idolises legendary fast bowler Wasim Akram, added that he has taken a few tips from the 50-year-old.
India will be playing three ODIs and three T20s, all in Harare, between June 11 and 22.
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