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Former Indian head coach revealed the name of one bowler he missed during T20 World Cup 2021 in United Arab Emirates. T Natarajan was included as net bowler for the tour but was picked in the Indian Test team after a few players got injured.
“Very happy for him. We missed him in the World Cup. He would’ve been a certainty had he been fit,” Shastri told ESPNcricinfo.
Indian bowlers could not get a single wicket in their campaign opener against Pakistan as duo of Babar Azam and Mohammad Rizwan chased down the target with ease. Natarajan could have provided the variety in India’s pace attack.
The 31-year-old got injured in the England series and was unavailable for selection. He also missed the second phase of IPL 2021. Shastri feels that he is a top-notch death bowler and is lot quicker than it seems.
“He got injured against England when we were playing the ODI series and we really missed him (in the World Cup). He’s that specialist death bowler, bowls those yorkers very skilfully. He’s got great control. He is skiddy. A bit quicker than you think and hits the bat,” Shastri added.
He played in the Gabba Test for India and picked up three wickets. He has played two ODIs and three T20Is so far and bagged three and seven wickets respectively.
In the ongoing season, the left-arm fast bowler picked up the wickets of Lucknow Super Giants (LSG) skipper KL Rahul and all-rounder Krunal Pandya in the penultimate over of the innings on April 4. He conceded 26 runs from his four overs. In the first game of the season against Rajasthan Royals (RR), he conceded 43 runs but got the wickets of Shimron Hetmyer and Riyan Parag in the last over.
In the IPL 2022 mega auction, he was picked for Rs 4 crore by Hyderabad-based franchise despite injury concerns. Natarajan made his IPL debut in 2017. So far, he has taken 24 wickets from 26 games at an average of 31.52. His best season was in 2020 when he got 16 wickets from 16 games.
