5 Indian cricketers who made their first impression in Australia
Barinder Sran made his debut in the first ODI against Australia at the WACAFor India's limited-overs tour of Australia, the Indian selectors named quite a few names in the ODI squad – Barinder Sran, Manish Pandey, Gurkeerat Singh Mann, and Rishi Dhawan. It shows the intent of the Indian management to give opportunities to players who have been performing well in the domestic arena.However, it is not the first time that India has announced new faces for a tour of Australia. In the past, quite a few of the then Indian youngsters made their mark in international cricket.Sran impressed in the first ODI after picking up two early wickets as he dismissed both Australian openers. Whether the 23-year-old left-arm pace bowler can go on to make a lasting impression in international cricket remains to be seen.We take a look at five of such players who made their first impression Down Under, players who can be a source of inspiration for the aforementioned young Indian players.
#1 Irfan Pathan - 2004 VB Series
It has been more than three years since the last time that all-rounder Irfan Pathan played international cricket. A bad run of form and injuries hampered Pathan's chance to become the much-touted all-rounder India was looking for.
However, Pathan had his start to international cricket in Australia, when he made his debut in the second Test of the Border-Gavaskar Trophy at the Adelaide Oval in December 2003. Although he did not have a great start to his Test career, Pathan made quite an impression in the VB series that followed the Test series.
The VB Series was played between Australia, India and Zimbabwe during January-February 2004. Even though Australia beat India in the finals of the tournament, the 20-year-old Pathan made a good impression with the ball and put in a fairly decent performance with the ball.
In the ten matches that he played, Pathan picked up 16 wickets with one four-wicket haul against Zimbabwe that earned him the man-of-the-match award. With the bat, Pathan had an average of 21.25, which was a good performance for a player who batted at No. 8.