How Virat Kohli, Rohit Sharma helped Gurnoor Brar return to New Zealand

Gurnoor Brar has found his rhythm in New Zealand and has become one of India’s biggest bowling positives in the ongoing ODI series against the Black Caps. After some difficult matches early in his career, the young fast bowler bounced back with impressive performances in Auckland and Wellington to help India take a 2-0 lead in the five-match series.

Brar has taken seven wickets in the two matches, making him the leading wicket-taker in the series. His latest performance was particularly impressive as he returned career-best ODI figures of 4/30 on Saturday 7 November in Wellington to win the Man of the Match award. India eventually registered a a thrilling four-run win by DLS.

After India’s second win in a row, Brar opened up about how senior players Virat Kohli, Rohit Sharma and captain Shubman Gill helped him regain confidence during a difficult phase.

“I had open nets with Virat and Rohit bhai and they gave me a lot of inputs. Shubman also guided me,” Gurnoor said at the post-match press conference.

“The matches at Guwahati and Lord’s were demotivating but it was important to learn from those experiences.

GURNOOR BRAR PROVIDES ODI IN NEW ZEALAND

Brar’s struggles in previous appearances were reflected in his bowling figures. In the ODI against West Indies in Guwahati on 30 September, he conceded 96 runs in 10 overs, taking two wickets. Earlier, during India’s ODI against England at Lord’s on July 19, he endured another difficult outing conceding 97 runs in 10 overs without a wicket.

However, the 6ft 5in pacer has shown considerable improvement in New Zealand. In the opening ODI at Eden Park in Auckland, Brar took three wickets for 44 runs in 9.2 overs as India restricted the hosts to 185.

He followed that up with an even better performance in Wellington. Bowling with control and making good use of the bounce on offer, Brar tormented the New Zealand batting line-up with a four-wicket haul. His wickets included Tom Latham, Glenn Phillips and Mitchell Santner, while his spell played a key role in restricting the hosts to 134.

With seven wickets in two matches, Brar has emerged as India’s leading wicket-taker in the series and will be looking to continue his impressive run.

India next face New Zealand in the third ODI at Seddon Park in Hamilton on Tuesday, November 10.

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