It was not very long ago that Indian-origin Sydney-sider, Gurinder Sandhu made his entry into the Australian national team as a fast bowler. Arjun Nair is playing alongside Gurinder Sandhu for NSW in the Sheffield Shield Cup.
Arjun Nair's selection to the NSW 12-member squad for the Sheffield Shield Cup came just three months after being named in the Australian Under 19 side. At the age of 17 years and 319 days, Arjun is the 11th youngest player to make First Class debut for NSW, sitting behind Pat Cummins (17 years and 299 days) and Josh Hazlewood (17 years and 310 days), according to Cricket NSW. The youngest player to make First Class debut for NSW is Ian Craig who was 16 years and 249 days old.
A commanding performance both with ball and bat for NSW Metro in the National Under 19 Championship recently, made him the favourite pick for the selectors. Arjun's 6 wicket haul for 24 runs in ten overs and an impressive 41 runs with the bat helped NSW Metro beat ACT/NSW Country in the finals.
All-round talent, and consistency over the years in the Under 17 levels had also given Arjun Nair a spot in the Under 19 Australian World Cup squad. But, unfortunately Australia withdrew from the tournament.
An all-rounder with exceptional batting skills and off-spinning ability, the 17 year old also bowls the `away going delivery' baffling the best batsmen. Selectors and legends of the game have come forward with accolades for this young cricketing prospect. Greg Chappel considers Arjun Nair as a young cricket talent who can offer a lot to Australian cricket.
Arjun Nair who lives in Girraween, Sydney is the son of Jayanand Nair and Shalini Nair, migrants from the state of Kerala, India.
