Bengaluru: In a crowded Indian pace pool, opportunities have to be seized. Punjab’s Gurnoor Brar appears to have taken that lesson to heart. The lanky pacer made an immediate impression on his India ODI debut against Afghanistan in June, claiming three wickets. A month later, representing India ‘A’, he followed it up with a 10-wicket match haul against Sri Lanka ‘A’ in Galle.Brar’s schedule has been relentless. He flew in from Sri Lanka on Friday and turned up for the Duleep Trophy semifinal against South Zone at the BCCI Centre of Excellence on Sunday. Despite bowling 23 overs on a slow-paced surface, he maintained his intensity and finished with a four-wicket match haul in the first innings.For now, though, workload is not something that worries the 25-year-old. He believes the demands of fast bowling are best embraced rather than feared. “I have always believed in training my body to high loads. No matter how much I bowl, it should not matter. I enjoy bowling more. Breaks are needed, obviously, but it is all planning. And the more we push our bodies, the stronger they get. I have an old fast bowler’s mindset: the more you bowl, the stronger you become.”Brar’s rise has been built on sustained performances. He took 30 wickets from nine matches in the last two Ranji Trophy seasons, earned his maiden Test call-up for the one-off Afghanistan Test and was subsequently picked for the Sri Lanka tour. The speedster is yet to make his Test debut but the last three months have offered an invaluable lesson alongside Jasprit Bumrah, Mohammed Siraj, Prasidh Krishna and other seniors.“I was performing well in the Ranji Trophy; I also did well for India ‘A’ and I was picked on that basis. But I’ve learned how to stay consistent with my lengths and bowl on different wickets. I’ve been growing well under Morne sir (bowling coach Morkel), Gambhir sir (head coach), ‘Boom’ (Jasprit Bumrah), Siraj and Prasidh. Seeing them prepare, I have developed,” said Brar, who has taken 11 wickets in six ODIs.The biggest lesson from the senior pros, he said, was not to abandon what brought him this far. “The learnings from Bumrah and other seniors were to stick to my strengths and not change. But the important thing is to understand bowling in different conditions. Things come along with the experience of playing more matches,” he said.
