The left-arm pacer T Natarajan, who has become the first Indian to debut across all the formats in the same tour, feels that he has still many miles to go to reach a better position in Team India. The speedster was the highest wicket-taker for India in the T20I series against Australia.
T Natarajan travelled with Team India to Australia as the net bowler after impressing with his executions of yorker in the Indian Premier League (IPL) 2020. But he ended up debuting in ODI, T20I and Test for India against Australia.
T Natarajan has stated that the Australia tour was like a dream for him. But he now wants to take his cricket career to the next level. H
“The Australia tour was like a dream tour for me,” Natarajan told reporters during an interaction on Sunday.
“I want to achieve more and reach a better position in the Indian team. I still have many miles to go,” he said.
I utilised the opportunity well: T Natarajan
The speedster opined that he was not only the hero of the tour but his other teammates contributed equally to produce a match-winning performance.
“I haven’t played alone. Ten others played with me. It’s about team spirit. Everyone played their role perfectly. I, too, utilised the opportunity well,” he observed.
Swooped in ODIs as the backup of Navdeep Saini, he played the last match of the ODI series, which was the dead rubber but important for India to avoid a clean sweep. The pacer picked up the important wicket of Marnus Labuschagne and executed perfect yorkers to bamboozle Australians.
Consecutively, T Natarajan also made the debut in the three-match T20I series. He became the highest wicket-taker of the side, picking six wickets in three matches. He perfectly filled the space of Jasprit Bumrah, who was rested.
The injuries woes led to the ouster of all the premier pacers from the last Test match. Eventually, he was also handed over the Test cap. The left-arm pacer didn’t disappoint and notched three wickets in his debut Test match in The Gabba.