Harry Brook made his T20I debut in January 2022 against the West Indies, but it was not until the tour of Pakistan in September that his talent came to light. He scored heavily in the shortest format at a strike rate of 163.01 and followed it up with three Test hundreds to throw his hat in the Indian Premier League ring.
On Friday, the Yorkshire batter became the first millionaire at the IPL auctions for the 2023 edition. Sunrisers Hyderabad picked up Brook for a whopping Rs 13.25 crore — nine times his base price of Rs 1.5 crore. He beat Shimron Hetmyer in the race for the most expensive specialist batter sold at a mini-auction. The West Indian had gone to Delhi Capitals for Rs 7.75 crore in 2020.
The 23-year-old is an unknown commodity in India, but he has been making the headlines globally for his ability to change gears, even in Tests.
He was part of the triumphant T20 World Cup squad under Jos Buttler in Australia. The batter did not fire in the Cup. He exploded in the red-ball series in Pakistan post the ICC showpiece, smashing 468 runs at a strike rate of 93.41. His scores of 153 off 116 balls, 87 off 65, 108 off 149, and 111 off 150 in the subcontinent against quality spinners underlined his talent and potential to be lethal in any format.
He earned the player of the series award in both the T20Is and Tests for scoring 238 and 468 runs.
What can Brook offer to SRH?
Brook, the former captain of the England U-19 team, is a heavily-toured cricketer. He has the experience of playing franchise cricket, which augurs well for the future of Sunrisers Hyderabad (SRH).
A flexible batter, he can be used as a finisher as well as a top-order batter with left-handed Abhishek Sharma and Mayank Agarwal as openers in the SRH set-up. In his short yet sweet T20 career, Brook has batted in the lower middle order at an average of 55 and moved up to No. 4 for the Northern Superchargers in The Hundred. The knock of 62 off 31 balls almost handed the Superchargers a win over Welsh Fire. He smashed five sixes and three fours to record a strike rate of 200. He caught the attention of his captain Ben Stokes who said, "He just takes the game on from ball one. He is not scared of any situation."
Due to his experience of playing in the Pakistan Super League, Brook has a fair idea about the conditions in the subcontinent which may help his case in the IPL too. He was the youngest-ever centurion in the PSL when he smashed 102 off 49 balls — after coming into bat at 12/3 — for Lahore Qalandars against Islamabad United against a quality bowling attack comprising left-arm spinner Zahir Khan and speedster Mohammad Wasim.Brook contributed with an unbeaten 41 off 22 balls in the final as Qalandars beat Multan Sultans to win the title. Overall in the T20s in Asia, the batter has 581 runs in 16 innings at a strike rate of 167.43.
A good player of spin
If one rewinds the years, most English cricketers struggled against spin except Joe Root, Jos Buttler and Ben Stokes. With the aggressive approach and change of mindset, batters from the U-19 level were taught to handle spin better and Brook was no exception.
The right-hander made the regulation U-19 tour to India five years ago along with compatriots Tom Banton and Ollie Pope and played against the likes of Rahul Chahar and Anukul Roy — both of whom went on to play the IPL.
Brook is a Root-mould player whose feet move with ease against spinners. He is a good sweeper of the ball and can also generate staple T20 shots behind the wicket against any bowler.
SRH head coach Brian Lara believes Brook has matured as a player in the past few years. "He is a confident player playing Tests and T20Is for England. He has had experience in the PSL, in Asian conditions, where he has excelled. It will be his first IPL but I believe he has got the goods. The tournament allows us to look at specialists."
The all-rounders ruled the roost in the bidding war. Sam Curran of England became the most expensive buy at an auction as Punjab Kings bought him for Rs 18.25 crore. Australian all-rounder Cameron Green was the second-most expensive player who went to Mumbai Indians for Rs 17.50 crore, followed by England's World Cup hero Ben Stokes who went to Chennai Super Kings for Rs 16.25 crore.