Gurnoor Brar indebted to Gujarat Titans’ Shubman Gill & Ashish Nehra, wants to win Tests for India

Gurnoor Brar has yet to play for the Gujarat Titans (GT). Yet, the fast bowler from Punjab credits the Indian Premier League (IPL) franchise for his India debut. The 26-year-old had played a solitary match for the Punjab Kings in IPL 2023 and didn’t find any bidders in 2024.

Gujarat Titans behind India debut

GT didn’t bid for Gurnoor, but Shubman Gill, who was making his captaincy debut in the IPL, called Gurnoor up as a net bowler. Gill had watched Brar from up close and had recommended his name to the Punjab management for the under-23 team. Subsequently, GT picked Gurnoor at the IPL 2025 auction. Three years later, Gurnoor hasn’t made his GT debut but has made his ODI debut for India.

However, his journey from a GT net bowler to an India international began when Gill called him up. GT head coach Ashish Nehra identified the talent. Gurnoor might not have played a match for them with the likes of Kagiso Rabada, Mohammed Siraj, Ashok Sharma and Prasidh Krishna ahead of him. But these 3 years with GT have made him the player he is today.

“I joined the Gujarat Titans as a net bowler in 2024. That’s when Ashish Nehra sir first noticed me. He was impressed with my height, my pace, and my ability to swing the ball. His appreciation gave me confidence. My growth truly began after joining the Titans camp. Nehra sir and Shubman Gill supported me a lot. They pushed me to get better every day. When you have that kind of backing from experienced people, it makes a huge difference,” Gurnoor told JioStar.

Test cricket, the ultimate dream

A 3-fer on ODI debut is impressive. But Gurnoor isn’t satisfied. The 26-year-old wants to represent India in Test cricket. In his career, the 6’5 fast bowler has played 18 first-class matches. He was mighty close to making his Test debut in Mullanpur against Afghanistan, but the management decided to stick with Siraj and Prasidh.

Gurnoor wants to don the whites. That’s his original dream. He wants to do well in IPL and shorter formats for India, but red-ball cricket is the ambition. And he doesn’t just want to represent India but win matches for the team.

My ultimate dream is to represent India in Test cricket. That is what I want most. Yes, everyone wants to play IPL, ODIs, and T20Is. But Test cricket is the ultimate format; nothing is above that. As a kid, every cricketer dreams of wearing the white jersey. That dream never changes. Being picked for the Test and ODI side is a great feeling. Now, I don’t just want to play for India. I want to win matches for India,” he added.

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