The pacer Gurnoor Brar may be the “X-Factor” for the two-time World Test Championship (WTC) finalists during the two-Test tour to Sri Lanka, according to former all-rounder Farveez Maharoof of Sri Lanka. In the two-match series against Sri Lanka, which starts in Galle on Saturday, Maharoof stated he might be tempted to give the 26-year-old his Test debut.
With Jasprit Bumrah, Nitish Kumar Reddy, and Harshit Rana sidelined, India’s two-Test series against Sri Lanka will start in Galle with a much weaker pace attack. Captain Shubman Gill will have to work with a reorganised team because Washington Sundar and Sai Sudharsan are also unable to compete.
The pacer Gurnoor Brar may be the “X-Factor” for the two-time World Test Championship (WTC) finalists during the two-Test tour to Sri Lanka, according to former all-rounder Farveez Maharoof of Sri Lanka. He said, “I like Gurnoor Brar. I think he can be an X Factor. He has the bounce, pace, the fighting spirit, and he can be nasty.”
He further added, “If you watched the warm-up match (against SL XI where he took a total of three matches), some of the deliveries he bowled against the batters who have already played Tests, he was quite uneasy on batters. A couple of players also got some body blows. If I am the think tank of India, I will be tempted to try Brar. I know he has not played red-ball cricket and has just played white-ball cricket for India, but he brings that X Factor, those short spells where you just want to break the rhythm of the batter. He can be a lethal weapon.”
Maharoof feels that Bumrah’s absence has the biggest impact on India’s bowling preparations out of all the unavailable players. Seamers who produce reverse swing with the older ball—a talent Bumrah has continuously displayed at the international level—can profit from Galle’s pitch.
He said, “The ability to reverse-swing the ball, especially with the older ball, is something Bumrah brings, and that is going to be a massive miss for India. That is where I think they could lack some wicket-taking ability. Mohammed Siraj is a good bowler, with all due respect to him, but when you compare the two fast bowlers, there is a bit of a difference.”
