“The more you mix, the stronger you become”: Gurnoor Brar

Bengaluru: In a crowded Indian pool, there are opportunities to seize. Punjabi’s Gurnoor Brar seems to have taken this lesson to heart. The lanky pacer made an instant impression on his ODI debut for India against Afghanistan in June, taking three wickets. A month later, representing India ‘A’, he followed it up with a 10-wicket haul against Sri Lanka ‘A’ at Galle.Brar’s schedule was relentless. He flew in from Sri Lanka on Friday and took part in the Duleep Trophy semi-final against South Zone at the BCCI Center of Excellence on Sunday. Despite playing 23 overs on a slow surface, he maintained his intensity and ended the match by four wickets in the first innings.At the moment, however, the workload is not something that worries the 25-year-old. He believes that the demands of fast bowling are better embraced than feared. “I’ve always believed in training my body for heavy loads. No matter how much I bowl, it shouldn’t matter. I enjoy bowling more. Of course, breaks are needed, but it’s all planning. And the more we push our bodies, the stronger they get. I have the old quick thinking of bowlers: the more you bowl, the stronger you are.”Brar’s rise was built on consistent performances. He took 30 wickets from nine matches in the last two Ranji Trophy seasons, earned his first Test call-up for the one-off Test in Afghanistan and was subsequently selected for the tour of Sri Lanka. The speedster is yet to make his Test debut but the past three months have offered an invaluable lesson alongside Jasprit Bumrah, Mohammed Siraj, Prasidh Krishna and other seniors.“I did well in the Ranji Trophy; I also did well for India ‘A’ and was selected on that basis. But I learned how to stay consistent with my lengths and bowl at different wickets. I grew well under Morne sir (bowling coach Morkel), Gambhir sir (head coach), ‘Boom’ (Jasprit Bumrah and developed Prasidh), See Irrraj, See took 11 wickets in six ODIs.The biggest lesson he learned from the older pros, he said, was not to let go of what got him this far. “The lesson from Bumrah and other seniors was to stick to my strengths and not change. But the important thing is to understand bowling in different conditions. Things come along with the experience of playing more matches,” he said.