Fit again pacer Gurjapneet restarts career after highs of Pujara wicket and bowling to Kohli in nets

Bengaluru, Sep 14 (PTI) From dismissing Cheteshwar Pujara for a duck to bowling to Virat Kohli at nets, Gurjapneet Singh’s career was ready to take off to the next level last year before a groin injury confined the left-arm pacer to the sidelines.

The injury also curtailed his IPL 2025 stint with Chennai Super Kings as they replaced him mid-season with Dewald Brevis.

But Gurjapneet has now started reconstructing his career gradually, evidenced by the eight wickets he grabbed in two innings for the South Zone in the ongoing Duleep Trophy here.

“I am just trying to do my best, always expecting to bowl at least 20 overs in a day and I have to manage my workload as well and giving my 100% on every ball, bowling in good channels consistently whether I am tired or not,” said Gurjapneet after third day’s play.

The effort and cricketing smarts were visible in the way he bowled against an aggressive Rajat Patidar.

Patidar was using the upper cut to good effect during his 115-ball 101, but Gurjapneet found a semblance of impatience in the Central Zone skipper’s batting.

“I tried to think…okay, he (Patidar) is always trying to connect the ball, always trying to play the ball, as he did not leave many balls. I was thinking that he does not have as much patience as Yash (Rathod) has.

“So, I thought we can charge him with a few good bouncers, I know some boundaries will come, but he will also swing, maybe an edge will be there or something else will happen.

“Then 2 to 3 overs I bowled bouncers to him and we kept a fielder on the deep square leg, fine leg for catching. I asked the captain (Mohammed Azharuddeen) for another over when he wanted to bring in a spinner, and the next ball he got out,” he explained.

But the Tamil Nadu pacer has not forgotten the struggles he has had with injuries, starting with a lower-back strain in 2022.

“I had a lower-back injury during that year’s TNPL. Coming back from injury is very tough as you need to maintain your strength as well and you will be lacking in so many other areas because your body is not the same as before. It takes longer to fall into the same rhythm.

"When I came back, I was struggling with the fitness, I was not able to bowl more overs, so slowly, day-by-day I did whatever is needed in tandem with the strength and conditioning coaches and physios and it helped me play in TNPL 2023 and it was a good season,” he added.

The 2024 started on a bright note for the 26-year-old, ousting veteran batter Pujara for a duck in a Ranji Trophy match against Saurashtra, where he returned with a career best innings haul of 6 for 22.

Soon, he was drafted in as a net bowler ahead of India’s home Test series against Bangladesh late 2024 where he had an extensive spell against Kohli, who gave the pacer some valuable tips.

But a groin niggle struck him during the Syed Mushtaq Ali Trophy, precisely at the time the national attention was slowly turning on him.

It forced him to sit out of the IPL 2025.

“During the Syed Mushtaq Ali Trophy, I was getting groin issues, somewhere tightness used to come and on and off. Then I started doing rehab again for 2-3 months.

"During the IPL, it was slightly tight and was struggling with running. It needed 1 or 2 months more to recover before the muscles will be ready to handle the load because again you are putting load and all on muscles.

"I came back again in IPL, I started bowling in nets and all and I was bowling, so on and off, sometimes I was bowling good one day and the next day I felt soreness in my groin. My graph was very uneven,” he added.

But the outing in the ongoing Duleep Trophy has put him at ease to a good extent ahead of the Ranji Trophy season, starting on October 15.

“Now, I think I am getting better and in fact getting better day by day, and hopefully the season ahead will be a good one for me,” he said.

Gurjapneet, who is originally from Ludhiana, has also settled nicely into the Tamil Nadu dressing room despite a few obvious barriers like language and culture.

“Bala bhai (L Balaji) has always been there for me. He always guided me. There is a very good environment in the team.

"So, I wouldn't say it was difficult (adapting to TN cricket team). It's just all about cricket and as professional the TN players are very good, very talkative,” he added.

“I am also learning to love Dosas now, it has been good for me,” he said with a hearty laughter. PTI UNG BS BS