Former Indian spinner Murali Kartik has showered praise on Gurnoor Brar after India registered a four-run win (DLS) in the second ODI against New Zealand at Hnry Stadium, Wellington on Saturday.
The lanky pacer returned with impressive figures of 4-30 in his quota of 10 overs as he played a key role in skittling out New Zealand at 134 in a 47-over match. Brar accounted for Tom Latham, Glenn Phillips, Nathan Smith and Mitchell Santner. Thus, he was awarded Player of the Match for bagging his career-best ODI figures.
Brar had also scalped three wickets in the series opener at Eden Park, Auckland.
Murali Kartik said on his Cricbuzz, “Good to see that hostility from Gurnoor Brar because we want somebody like that. That’s one of the reasons why Gautam likes him. Bowls a heavy ball; he bowls those rib-ticklers to the batters, and it could be even foreigners; you can see the number of people he has hit today. These are positive signals for India, given the fact that you’ve got two experienced campaigners still sitting on the bench, people like Kuldeep Yadav and Mohammed Siraj.”
Kartik also expressed his delight as rookie bowlers like Brar and Auqib Nabi Dar are getting to bowl in seam-friendly conditions in New Zealand. Dar also scalped two wickets in the second game, which would do him a world of good after he went wickeless in the first two matches of his ODI career.
“What they’ve encountered from the time they’ve made their debuts, people like Auqib Nabi and Gurnoor Brar, are really docile, benign conditions. You just feel for them. It’s just merciless, and sometimes you feel, is it a chore? You come and play the game because you want to enjoy it and the challenges that come with it. But this is like one-sided. It’s as if tying your hands, tying your legs, and flogging you with no weapon in your own hand. It feels like that for bowlers. Sometimes you feel so sad sitting in the com box as well. But it’s good that they’ve got certain conditions which have gone their way.”
The third ODI between India and New Zealand will be played at Seddon Park, Hamilton, on Tuesday.
