11 Facts about Brainder Sran - The promising young face of Indian fast bowling

Brainder Sran, the fresh face named in the ODI squad for the Australia tour is a highly promising youngster from Punjab. Very few Indian sportspersons can even think of switching tracks from one sport to another and fewer have done it successfully. But, Punjab left-arm fast bowler Brainder Singh Sran is one such gifted sportsperson. Becoming a cricketer wasn’t his prime goal but fate has its own way of making people meet their destiny.

Here are some interesting facts about Barinder Singh Sran:

1. Birth:

Brainder Balbir Singh Sran was born 10th December 1992 in the town of Sirsa bordering Punjab and Haryana.

2. A Boxing talent:

Brainder, as a teenager, was once not just another boy pursuing a career in boxing, but was honing his skills at the country’s punching nursery – Bhiwani before joining the Punjab team. He picked up boxing really quickly which caught the attention of Jagdish Singh, a coach who has honed several Olympic level talents, such as 2008 bronze medallist Vijender Singh. In fact, Brainder, weighing 75 kilos back then, found himself in the same weight category as the India’s most famous pugilist.

3. Absconds without informing his boxing coach:

Brainder fled to Bhiwani without informing his coach. In 2010, when he was just 17 years old, the cricket buff was desperate to make a name for him in cricket and ran away from the Boxing school without informing anyone. He went to Mohali and participated in the Kings XI Punjab’s talent hunt. He impressed one and all with his sharp in-swingers and terrific speed. Unluckily, KXIP didn’t happen for him but Brainder left a mark on many minds with his talent, including state-level coaches and more importantly, Punjab selectors.

4. Domestic debut:

Brainder Sran made his debut for his home side Punjab in the year 2011 against Orrisa.

5. Talent in abundance:

It was a memorable game as the left-arm seamer showed the glimpses of his talent as he ended the match with the figures of 3/66 and 4/27.

6. Indian Premier League:

Brainder was bought by the Jaipur franchise Rajasthan Royals in the 2015 auction in the eighth edition of the Indian Premier League at his base price 10 lakh.

7. Impressive 2015:

In the Ranji 2015-16 season, Brainder played seven games picking 18 wickets at 35.66 – the second most for Punjab after Sarabjit Ladda’s tally of 25. In the ongoing Vijay Hazare Trophy, the youngster has impressed with 14 wickets in six matches.

8. Knocks out the umpire!

Australian umpire John Ward, who was in India to officiate Ranji games, was struck on the head by a shot that Brainder Sran played on the first day of their Ranji Trophy match against Tamil Nadu in Dindigul. Luckily, he was declared stable after being rushed to the hospital. Brainder, according to a Wisden India report, smashed a full delivery from DT Chandrasekar which hit Ward’s head causing him to drop to the ground.

9. A late birthday gift:

Nine days after he celebrated his birthday, Brainder got a surprise after he was named in the ODI team for the ODI series in Australia. His hard work finally paid off.

10. Highly praised:

Brainder’s talent was acknowledged and praised by many prominent names including Rahul Dravid and Yuvraj Singh. Yuvi after a Ranji game tweeted, “Brainder Saran! Serious spell of fast bowling on a flat track! A talented fast left armer to watch out for reminds me of a young Zaheer Khan.” Rahul Dravid mentioned him in an interview before the IPL. He said, “Brainder Saran, left arm seamer from Punjab hasn’t played a lot this year but he is an exciting talent as well.”

11. Performs under pressure:

During the ongoing Vijay Hazare trophy, Brainder defended 7 runs in the last over against Assam. He gave away only five runs out of which four were byes and only one came off the bat.