From playing tennis-ball cricket in Chinnapampatti – a village near Salem in Tamil Nadu – to wearing the prestigious Indian jersey and representing India in Australia, the journey of T Natarajan has looked like a fairytale.
After a successful Indian Premier League (IPL) season, Natarajan was picked as a ‘net-bowler’ on Australia’s tour where his fortunes turned around as he replaced Varun Chakravarthy, who was ruled out due to injury.
The left-armer made his debut in the third ODI against Australia, where he picked up two wickets. He then played the T20I series and bagged as many as six wickets at an economy of 6.91. The medium-pacer played the Test series as well, replacing injured Umesh Yadav.
Natarajan featured in the epic Brisbane Test, where Team India defeated Australia by three wickets and brought an end to Australia’s unbeaten run at The Gabba since 1988. Nattu picked up three wickets in the match and became the first Indian cricketer to make his debut on the same tour in all three formats.
After the impressive tour, when Natarajan returned to his hometown in Salem, he received a grand welcome.
Former India cricketer Virender Sehwag took to Twitter to share a video of Natarajan’s grand welcome at his village. In the video, fans can be seen cheering for Natarajan, who was acknowledging the support while standing in a chariot.
“Swagat nahi karoge? This is India. Here cricket is not just a game. It is so much more. #natarajan getting a grand welcome upon his arrival at his Chinnappampatti village in Salem district. What a story.#cricket #india” Sehwag captioned the video.
Swagat nahi karoge ?
This is India. Here cricket is not just a game. It is so much more. Natarajan getting a grand welcome upon his arrival at his Chinnappampatti village in Salem district. What an incredible story.#Cricket pic.twitter.com/hjZ7kReCub— Virender Sehwag (@virendersehwag) January 21, 2021
