'If I was an Indian selector, I'd keep close eye on him': Vaughan says India 'would be silly' not to consider SRH star

Michael Vaughan said that India would be ‘silly’ not to consider the Sunrisers Hyderabad star.

Over the past few years, a number of quality fast bowlers have emerged in Indian cricket. While the likes of Jasprit Bumrah and Mohammed Shami are widely regarded among the most lethal pacers in world cricket, Mohammed Siraj also cemented his place in the Test side with his consistent performances over the past year for the side. In limited-overs cricket, the likes of Deepak Chahar, Prasidh Krishna, and Bhuvneshwar Kumar have all produced quality performances for India so far.

However, one player who has gone under the radar despite impressive performances for the national side is T Natarajan. The 31-year-old sprung into the limelight with consistent outings for his Indian Premier League franchise Sunrisers Hyderabad in the 2020 edition of the tournament, and was consequently called up for India's limited-overs side in the tour of Australia. Natarajan also made his Test debut during the same tour, and produced an impressive performance in the final Test in Sydney as India registered a 2-1 series win.

However, injuries forced him to the sidelines and Natarajan eventually fell out of reckoning. The left-arm pacer last played for India over a year ago, but has been producing decent performances for the SRH in the ongoing edition of the IPL (6 wickets in 3 games). And former England cricketer Michael Vaughan believes India would be “silly” to not consider Natarajan again.

“Looking at India, I think they'd be silly not to look at him. He's a left-arm over; the angle that the left armers bring bowling in the backend of the innings when the pitches just start to grip.. they can protect certain sections of the ground,” Vaughan said on Cricbuzz. 

Vaughan further said that he would be watching Natarajan closely if he was an Indian selector.

“A number of good T20 teams have one -- if not two -- left-arm seamers in their attacks. If I was an Indian selector, I would be keeping a close eye on him,” said Vaughan.