Bhuvneshwar Kumar helped me a lot at Sunrisers Hyderabad, says T Natarajan
In the first season of the TNPL in 2016, fast bowler T Natarajan's bowling created a lot of comparisons with Bangladesh pacer Mustafizur Rahman as both the bowlers possess a similar bowling action and are good at executing the yorkers when needed.
Since then, he has become a regular in the Tamil Nadu side across all three formats in the Indian domestic circuit and was brought by Kings XI Punjab for whopping 3 crores in the IPL 2017 auction before the squad was revamped ahead of the 2018 season where he represented Sunrisers Hyderabad.
Just when things were going well, Natarajan suffered an elbow injury and was out of action for nearly six months. He is making a comeback in the ongoing edition of the TNPL where he is representing Lyca Kovai Kings and has been doing well for them in the last three games.
Sportskeeda caught up with the left-arm seamer for an exclusive chat and here are the excerpts from the interview.
Q: How did the last one year go for you?
Last year, I had issues with my elbow. During Ranji Trophy, I could not focus on my game and was not able to put in a lot of efforts because of the pain. That's when I explained my problem to TNCA and asked them for support. They supported me in getting my surgery done and had to skip the whole season. But, coming back from the long lay off was very difficult. I was picked in the IPL auction by Sunrisers Hyderabad.
After a six month break, I directly joined Sunrisers without playing a single match. My elbow problem got sorted. The Sunrisers support staff and players were very kind and took care of me. I didn't play a single match but I was with them for two months and I can see the difference in myself. This season, I am starting things afresh. TNPL is my first tournament and things are going well so far. I am preparing myself for the TN league matches and other Indian domestic tournaments.
Q: How was the experience of sharing the dressing room with people like Bhuvneshwar Kumar, Tom Moody etc. at Sunrisers Hyderabad?
Bhuvneshwar Kumar is a genuine person and he helped me a lot. I have spoken a lot with him. Whenever I asked him something about the aspects of the game, he explained to me everything calmly. The dressing room atmosphere was good. I always ask Bhuvi for inputs when it comes to bowling. I know Sandeep Sharma closely since we play league matches together. I worked for two months with our bowling coach Muttiah Muralitharan and I can feel the difference in my game now. The dressing used to be fun, especially with Chris Jordan and Carlos Brathwaite, who had a fantastic sense of humor.
Q: How did you feel when you bowled for the first time in around six months?
There were a few restrictions in my bowling but now, things are fine. I even bowled the super over in the first match. When I bowled the super over in the 2016 edition, I was able to bowl yorkers accurately. This time, I bowled a couple of full tosses. I wanted to correct it. I am feeling good to be bowling.
Q: What are your goals for the upcoming season?
I just want to play all the matches this season without missing a match, be it Ranji Trophy, Vijay Hazare and Syed Mushtaq Ali and keep myself fit. This is my target for this season. I have a plan for myself.
For more details, log on to www.tnca.in