8 famous brother duos who represented their nation in T20I cricket
India's young off-spinning all-rounder Washington Sundar was ruled out of the limited-overs series in England due to an ankle injury picked up while playing football during a training session. Left-arm spinning all-rounders Axar Patel and Krunal Pandya have been named as his replacement in the ODI and T2OI teams respectively. Patel, who has already played 38 ODIs for India, will get another chance to show his worth but this is Krunal's maiden call-up to the Indian team.
Krunal has been impressive for his IPL side Mumbai Indians ever since he made his debut three years back. He is the elder of the two Pandya brothers and earned his long-awaited call-up after consistent displays with both and ball in domestic cricket and IPL.
Hardik, the younger Pandya brother made his debut for India two and half years ago and has cemented his place in the team as the dynamic pace-bowling all-rounder of the side. He has played over 75 matches across all three formats.
The Pandya brothers are star players for Mumbai Indians as both of them provide invaluable contributions with bat, ball and their electric fielding. Their performances have been integral to Mumbai's consistency in the IPL over the past three years. They feed off each other's energy and one's presence spurs the other one to greater heights.
Krunal has been the better performer for Mumbai Indians and was instrumental during their title-winning season in 2017 and finally gets a deserved call-up to play with his brother. It will be interesting to see how the Pandya brothers can combine to translate their performances from the Mumbai Indians blue to the Indian blue.
As Krunal is set to make his debut for India and line up alongside his younger brother Hardik in a celebratory moment for the Pandya family, we take a look at the 8 famous brother duos we have witnessed in T20I cricket so far-
#8 Niall O'Brien and Kevin O'Brien (Ireland)
Born into a family with rich cricketing tradition, the O'Brien brothers have gone on to become pioneers of cricket in Ireland. The brothers are probably the most globally recognized cricketers to come from Ireland, thanks to their exploits in major tournaments when fans from around the world are watching. Both are pivotal members of the team as Niall was the keeper of the side for a long time and Kevin is a hard-hitting all-rounder.
Both the brothers made their debuts long way back in 2006 and have been the flag-bearers for Irish cricket as they have played crucial roles in some of the famous Irish triumphs. Niall top scored with a well-composed 72 during their shock victory against Pakistan in the 2007 World Cup, while Kevin was the man at the crease when the winning runs were scored.
Kevin scored a scintillating ton against arch-rivals England, in a memorable run chase in excess of 330. The knock till date remains the fastest World Cup century.
While the elder brother Niall has represented Ireland in 100 ODIs and 30 T20Is, the younger brother Kevin has gone even further by representing them in 124 ODIs and 64 T20Is.
Their long term dream of playing Test match cricket for their country came true earlier this year against Pakistan and once again it was Kevin who stepped up with a historic ton in their maiden test match.
The two brothers have been great servants of the game and have provided a lot to Irish cricket and have a few more years of playing together left before they decide to hang up their boots.