Siddarth Kaul: All you need to know about India's latest fast bowling sensation
When the Indian selectors announced India's 15-member squad to take on Sri Lanka in a three-match ODI series starting at the HPCA Stadium in Dharamsala, one man who received his maiden national call-up is Punjab fast bowler Siddarth Kaul.
Not many in the country can swing the new ball both ways and fire in some yorkers towards the end. Siddarth is one of those very few names who can do that on every occasion.
Siddarth, who impressed everyone with his accurate and deadly yorkers in the 2017 IPL where he played for Sunrisers Hyderabad, has been knocking the doors of the selectors for a while and eventually, he has been rewarded for his consistent show in the domestic circuit.
In the 50 first-class matches he has played, Siddarth took 175 wickets at an average of 27 and in 52 List A matches, he has scalped 98 wickets at an average of 22.20. In the shortest format, he has accounted for 69 wickets in 57 matches at an average of 19.79 and an economy of 6.84.
He was included in the India A squad that took on the visiting England side earlier this year and was also a part of the triangular series (for the A teams) in South Africa, where he finished as the third-leading wicket-taker.
Let us take a look at 10 things you need to know about India's latest fast bowling sensation.
#1. Siddarth Kaul was born on 19 May 1990 at Pathankot in Punjab. He bats right-handed and bowls right-arm medium pace.
#2. Even though he was born in India, Siddarth belongs to the Indian-Canadian community.
#3. Siddarth's father, Tej Paul, played Ranji Trophy for Jammu and Kashmir and also worked for the Indian team as a physiotherapist.
#4. Siddarth plays alongside his brother Uday Kaul for the Punjab Ranji Trophy team.
#5. He started playing cricket in 1996 under the influence of his father and brother.
#6. Siddarth was a part of the victorious 2008 Indian under-19 team led by Virat Kohli and he bowled the last ball of the tournament, castling South Africa's Brad Barnes to seal India's win. He took ten wickets at an average of 15.40 in the tournament.
#7. Siddarth, who played for Sunrisers Hyderabad in the 2017 IPL, was also a part of Kolkata Knight Riders and Delhi Daredevils in the IPL.
#8. Earlier this year, he gave away 15 runs to MS Dhoni in the death overs of an IPL game between Sunrisers and Rising Pune Supergiant. After the match, Dhoni came to Siddarth and said, "Acha ball kar raha hai tu. Pace bhi bhadd gaya hai tera aur yorkers bhi ache jaa rahe hain. Aise hee sharp ball rakh" (You have been bowling well. The pace has increased and your yorkers are also accurate. Keep bowling sharply like this).
#9. Legendary Indian batsmen Sachin Tendulkar and MS Dhoni are Siddarth's favourite cricketers.
#10. In his first-class debut for Punjab against Orissa in the 2007-08 season, Siddarth claimed his maiden five-wicket haul as he returned with figures of 5/79 in the first innings. Till date, he has taken ten and four five-wicket hauls in first-class and List A cricket respectively.