India, May 23 -- "Ab to milenge. Bus short-pitched ball mat daalna," Rashid Khan ribs Gurnoor Brar in a widely watched Gujarat Titans video about their impending battle in next month's India-Afghanistan ODI series.

Before he was bought for Rs.1.3 crore by GT in the 2025 IPL auction, Brar had played a solitary IPL match, for Punjab Kings in 2023. However, the national selectors had been watching the tall Punjab fast bowler. "Over the last season and a half", according to national chief selector Ajit Agarkar.

Brar's selection over Auqib Nabi for the Afghanistan Test is a classic case of attributes prevailing, while the latter's red-ball skills, and the ability to move the ball in the air and off the seam, saw him take 60 wickets in Jammu ...