Punjab Kings’ Harpreet Brar once wanted to move to Canada but destiny certainly had very different plans for the left-arm spinner. In the 2019 IPL auction, Kings XI Punjab (now Punjab Kings) acquired him for his base price of ₹ 20 lakh at the age of 23 and he has been with the side ever since.
Slowly and steadily, Brar has become an integral part of the PBKS setup but the 28-year-old’s eventual aim is to play Test cricket for India.
After five years, 40 matches, and 24 wickets in IPL, surprisingly, he is yet to play Ranji Trophy for his state side Punjab but he is optimistic that his chance will come soon.
In an exclusive interaction with CricketNext, the PBKS player talks about the insights that he got from PBKS coach Sunil Joshi, his time with Team India as a net bowler and lessons from Virat Paaji.
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Excerpts:
Tell us about your journey, how did cricket start and did you actually want to shift to Canada?
I started my cricket in 2007. Initially, it was about playing with friends. Then, one of my friends joined an academy so I too went the same path and my parents got me enrolled there. I used to work on my skills and then got a chance to play for Punjab at the Under-16 level but did not get to play any professional cricket for seven years. Though, I used to play a lot of club cricket.
It was only in 2018 when I got an opportunity to play at the Under-23 level for Punjab. Later, I was picked in the IPL auction by the Punjab Kings. It’s been six years with the team now.
Canada ki koi story nahi hai. Upar bhagwan ne bola hua hai ki Punjabi bande Canada jane hi jane hain (laughs). But things started working out well here (in India) so, I didn’t fly to Canada.
Can you tell us about the insights that you got from Sunil Joshi?
The interaction with Joshi sir was a very good one. He talked about my bowling and discussed various things. The small inputs like using the crease and trying to bowl more revs eventually provided a lot of impact in my bowling. Obviously, when you adapt those things, you enhance your game. Sir had talked about all this last year and I started working on them slowly before the IPL.
Talk to us about the conversations you have had with Virat Kohli, MS Dhoni.
I don’t really speak in front of the seniors. I remember one instance where I had a conversation with MS Dhoni about batting in death overs. Another one was with Virat Paaji. I wasn’t a part of the XI regularly. In fact, team benched me for nine games in 2022 after playing a couple of games.
It was that time when we had a chat about it and he just told me one thing that focus on what you can control. So, these are the small things that have helped me.
Your family recently met Virat Kohli in Dharamshala. Can you tell us about the interactions that they had with the former India captain?
Yes. My family had come to watch my game (in Dharamshala) and they wanted to meet Virat Kohli. As I said, I don’t really talk much in front of the seniors and I didn’t want to disturb him in the hotel room. But after the game, I told him that my family wanted to meet him. He met them very gracefully and even talked to them in Punjabi.
You did exceptionally well for Punjab in CK Nayudu in 2018-19 (56 wickets from 11 games) but haven’t played Ranji Trophy for Punjab yet. Can you point a specific reason about the same?
To be honest, there hasn’t been any message from anyone on this. Talking about myself, I rather focus on my job. Be it white ball or red, my job is to play and I do that. But yeah, after 2019, I haven’t played any professional match with red ball. I am travelling with the Ranji Trophy side for the last four years but haven’t got a chance to play. I’m just waiting for my turn.
As a human, you obviously feel disappointed and you get that question in your mind that why I am not getting a chance despite doing well. But as I told you earlier, I only concentrate on the things that I can control.
We have selection matches before the Ranji Trophy and last year I was the highest wicket-taker in those games. Despite that, my name wasn’t there and honestly, I don’t really know the reason for that. So, my focus is to do well in those matches.
My final aim is to play Test cricket for India. In fact, I receive this feedback from many players that I can do really well in the longer format.
You had a conversation with Rahul Dravid when you were a net bowler for Team India (Asia Cup and West Indies tour of India (2022). What was the chat like?
The interaction was a normal one. He praised my bowling and asked me why I was not playing the red ball in domestic. Maine unhe bola ki mujhe to pata nahi hai, agar apko koi janta hai to use baat kara do meri, main khelna chahta hu (laughs).
You have maintained an impressive economy rate in List A (4.52), overall T20s (7.17) and in IPL (7.80). Can you explain the process that you follow for the same?
The feedback that I get about my bowling is that I bowl in good areas. Tappa acha pakad k rakhta hai. So, I just try to bowl in that one area as much as I can. Even my family says that it’s ok if you don’t get wickets, but make sure, you don’t leak runs. I try to bowl according to the field.
Ranji Trophy will be played in two parts. And white-ball fixtures will be held between the two phases. As a professional cricketer, how difficult it is to make the shift between the two formats?
When you start playing the game, you work on your skills. It’s all about the skills, no matter what format are you playing. It all depends upon the preparations that an individual player does before the start of the tournament. You can prepare accordingly and those who have been playing the game for a long time, they can adapt quickly.
This edition of the IPL has witnessed a lot of runs being scored. What is your feedback?
There is this Impact Player Rule now, which is certainly one of the reasons for the high scores in this IPL. You can add a batter or a bowler accordingly. Earlier, if a team used to score 200 odd, it would have a slight edge but things have changed now. Now, the competition has become tough for the bowlers. But, we have a lot of talent in our country and everyone will eventually get used to it.
Punjab Kings are out of IPL 2024 playoffs race. What is the atmosphere in the dressing room right now? Also, can you talk to us about playing under Shikhar Dhawan and Sam Curran?
See, everyone is really disappointed and hurt that we haven’t qualified for the playoffs. But the focus is to move on and enjoy the rest of the tournament.
Shikhar Paaji’s career is a very big one and he has played many matches for India. He has won many games for the national side and that experience helps him while leading the side.
Sam is doing really well in international cricket and he has surely learnt a lot as a skipper while leading the side in this season.
Do you also focus on batting? If yes, what are the drills that you follow?
Talking about the batting bit, I try to play with a lot of focus as and when I get the opportunity and try to build a muscle memory. If I’m playing 15 balls in a day, I play them as if I’m batting in a match situation.
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