Varun Aaron : Not getting picked for this year’s IPL was a shocker for sure

04/11/2018

Jharkhand-born pacer Varun Aaron has admitted that he was left in a state of complete shock when none of the eight IPL teams chose to buy him at the auctions conducted in January. Aaron has added that after being plagued with injuries he is looking for a new start to get back into the national team.

While Pakistan had the likes of pace-monster Shoaib Akhtar in their ranks who managed to terrorise batsmen with the sheer speed of his deliveries, India have always yearned for someone on the lines of Akhtar, Brett Lee, or even Shaun Tait. While the Indians are experienced when it came to swinging the ball with the likes of Kapil Dev, Zaheer Khan and Bhuvaneshwar Kumar in recent times, the need for an out-an-out fast bowler was always felt by the Indian masses.

In came Varun Aaron, a young lad from the state of Jharkhand and clocked deliveries at a speed that not many Indian bowlers of his age could match. Aaron took 13 wickets in the 2010–11 Ranji Trophy and bowled a 153.4 km/h (95.3 mph) delivery and was tipped for success with the Indian team. But injuries have plagued his career and dented his growth, with the 28-year old constantly suffering from back issues.

Having played for the Kolkata Knight Riders, Delhi Daredevils, Royal Challengers Bangalore, and Kings XI Punjab over the years, he was expected to join one of these franchises this year s well. But to his utter surprise, he was not picked by any of the eight teams that took part in the bidding process.

"I was not really thinking about whether I'd be picked or not in the IPL auction. It was more a case of which team is going to pick me. But when it didn't happen, it was a shocker for sure.

"But it took me a few minutes to snap out of it. For the amount of hard work I have put in, for all that I have come through, I feel there's bigger things in store." Aaron told Reuters in a telephone interview.

However, an unlikely door opened up for the pacer as Leicestershire asked him to fill in for Pakistan seamer Mohammad Abbas in the English county championship. Aaron claimed that he always wanted to play county cricket and learn to bowl in foreign conditions.

"I even considered skipping IPL last year to play county cricket. I spoke to my colleagues and my coaches who said 'No, you must play in the IPL, it's a big thing in the calendar' and stuff like that.

"This year what happened is by default... county cricket is really competitive. I know that after I come out of this, what I'm bowling now is going to be maximised by a big margin," added Aaron.

Varun Aaron : Not getting picked for this year’s IPL was a shocker for sure

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