Luck is when the opportunity to prepare is an often used phrase, sometimes overused; But his lucky break for Srikar Bharat was exactly the same. Being marginalized for some time, India’s first-choice wicketkeeper Wriddhiman Saha had the opportunity to showcase his primary skills as a wicketkeeper to India even before he was ruled out of the third day’s play against New Zealand in Kanpur. Saturday with a stiff neck. Bharat has always been highly regarded as a wicket-keeper and his batting has been on the rise in recent times. However, with the flamboyant Rishabh Pant and Saha, India were and still are below the pecking order. Then, strange things happen. The net bowlers who traveled to Australia not long ago made their debuts. India and played a key role in a historic victory.
Bharat’s three dismissals on the third day shows that he is more than capable of handling himself at the highest level. Will Young’s batting on 89 had got a thick lead while trying to cut and Bharat stayed down and eased a difficult catch. Furthermore, when the umpire nodded in disagreement it was Bharat who convinced skipper Ajinkya Rahane to go for a review and India got their first breakthrough. He had a small blip on his first day, when he could not catch the tough opportunity of being dropped off leg by Ross Taylor, then, being taken down leg and blinded by the batsman, the fact that Bharat also managed one are. The position of having a glove on the faint edge speaks volumes of his technique against spinners that have to put him on a tough wicket. He had redemption in the next delivery and pouch as an easy one. His third dismissal, the stumping of well-set Tom Latham, was no fuss and again showing that the Visakhapatnam-born can stay calm even under pressure. He was also quite entertaining on the mic and it is fair to say that he made the most of the unexpected opportunity he got as a substitute keeper.
Read also | IND vs NZ, 1st Test: Ashwin and umpire Nitin Menon get into a heated exchange, Rahane intervenes
In terms of skills, 37-year-old Saha is by far India’s best, perhaps the best in the world, and 24-year-old Rishabh Pant is a game-changer with India’s bat. And it is here that 28-year-old Bharat finds himself in a conundrum with no international game to his name till date. In 2018, India were very close to finding a place in the Indian Test squad that was touring England at the time, but the selectors opted to raise Pant, and as they say, rest is history. There has also been a hope of an ODI cap with Pant in Australia in 2020, but that too did not materialise. But, with this timely reminder, Bharat has put himself on the radar and Pant has been rested for the series, and if Saha doesn’t recover in time for the Mumbai Test, India could make a much-awaited debut. may be in line for. And if Saha is fit and comes back for the rest of the series, India could very well see themselves lose and look forward to the lucky break once again.
Who is KS Bharat?
Born in Visakhapatnam, Andhra Pradesh, the 27-year-old is experienced in first-class cricket with around 78 matches. The wicket-keeper batsman has 4283 runs in 123 innings at an average of 37.24, which includes 9 centuries and 23 fifties. Making his first-class debut at the age of 19 against Kerala in 2012-13, Bharat came into limelight a few years later in 2015, when he set a record in the Ranji Trophy, becoming the first Indian wicket-keeper batsman. Triple century in the country’s premier first-class tournament. Opening the innings, Bharat scored 308 runs in just 311 balls for Andhra Pradesh against Goa at Ongole in February 2015.
His ability to score fast and get a substantial portion of his runs in boundaries earned him a contract worth INR 10 Lakhs with Delhi Daredevils in the Indian Premier League (IPL) in 2015. India scored 758 runs in 9 matches in 2014. -15 Ranji Trophy. He recorded another century (besides his record triple) and two fifties and was a consistent scorer for Andhra in the prestigious tournament. His other standout century came against Vidarbha in the 2019-20 Ranji Trophy at Vijayawada. Batting at number five, he scored an unbeaten 102 in the second innings to save the match for his team.
Read also | IND vs NZ, 1st Test: Ashwin surpasses Shahid Afridi, Wasim Akram sets big Test bowling record
Bharat has been out of the senior team for the last few years. He was part of the India Blue squad for the 2018–19 Duleep Trophy and was included in India’s Test squad for the second Test against Bangladesh – again as a cover for Saha – in November 2019. He also found himself in the Indian ODI team. home series against Australia in January 2020 after Rishabh Pant suffered an injury. India have a decent record in List A cricket with 1351 runs in 51 matches at an average of 28.14 and a strike rate of around 70 with three hundred, but their best returns have been in the longer format. He scored 142 runs in just 139 balls with 11 fours and 8 sixes against England Lions at Wayanad in an unofficial Test in February 2019.
He was one of five standby players in India’s Test squad for the home series against England in early 2021. India was bought by Royal Challengers Bangalore for Rs 20 lakh in the auction in February this year and played eight matches for the franchise scoring 191 runs. runs at 38.20 and a half-century at 122.43 to his name. Bharat is widely regarded as one of the best keepers in the domestic circuit for his agility and skill behind the stumps.
get all IPL news and cricket score Here
,