Thangarasu Natarajan is an Indian cricketer born on 27 May, 1991 in Salem, Tamil Nadu. He plays as a left arm fast-medium bowler and is one of the up and coming talent from the state.
Just like every other Indian kid, Natarajan took up tennis-ball cricket as a hobby. However, one day a well-wisher from his village identified his skill as a bowler and asked Natarajan to try his hand at local competitive cricket. Motivated by the words, Natarajan relocated to Chennai and joined a cricket club in the city.
He first came into some limelight when he represented the team of BSNL in Tamil Nadu Cricket Association’s fourth division league. Natarajan then played 1st division cricket for Vijay Cricket Club for almost a year. Later, he moved to Jolly Rovers, a popular club that has fielded big names like Ravichandran Ashwin and Murali Vijay.
Natarajan made his first-class debut for Tamil Nadu in the Ranji Trophy on the 5th of January, 2015. In a match that was ultimately drawn, he made a great debut by taking 3 wickets in the first innings itself. Natarajan, in 16 first class innings has taken 27 wickets with an economy of 3.34. Natarajan’s first breakthrough came in 2016 when he represented Dindigul Dragons in the inaugural edition of Tamil Nadu Premier League (TNPL).
With a low average and economy, and the guaranteed chance of taking wickets, Natarajan has become a favorite of the selectors of the Tamil Nadu Ranji Trophy side.
A true rags to riches story, Natarajan joined the million-dollar club when Kings XI Punjab picked him up 3 crores for IPL 2017 after his sterling performances in the domestic season and in the first season of TNPL as well. He played in 6 games in his debut IPL season and picked up 2 wickets. After a mediocre season with KXIP, Natarajan was traded to Sunrisers Hyderabad in 2018 where he has been retained for the upcoming 2020 season.
Natarajan’s family wasn't financially well-off. While his father worked as a porter at a railway station, his mother still runs a road-side snack stall. As the eldest of five siblings, including three sisters, Natarajan was always worried about taking care of his family. But cricket has been a savior for the Natarajan family.
