Varun Aaron

In a country starved of genuinely quick bowlers, Varun Aaron grabbed the headlines when he hit 153 kph during the 2010-11 Vijay Hazare Trophy final against Gujarat. Hailing from Jharkhand, Aaron has been part of the MRF Pace Academy in Chennai since he was spotted by a talent scout at the age of 15. However, his career has been marred with frequent injuries. Two stress fractures of the back soon after his Ranji Trophy debut in the 2008-09 season for Jharkhand, a back injury that kept him out of India's tour to Australia in 2011-12 before a recurrence kept him out of competitive cricket for 15 months, and a leg injury in 2014 has had a severe impact on the pacer's Test career.

He was part of the India Emerging Players squad that went to Australia in 2011, and earned a call-up to the India ODI squad for the series in England. He did not get a game on that trip, but he made his India debut in Mumbai in October 2011, against England. He made his Test debut a month later, against West Indies, also in Mumbai.

Aaron's pace during India's tour of England in 2014 - including a sharp bouncer that broke Stuart Broad's nose - impressed county side Durham, and he was signed for the final few weeks of the season. Having earlier been part of the Kolkata Knight Riders squad, he made his IPL debut in 2011 for Delhi Daredevils. In 2014, Aaron was bought by Royal Challengers Bangalore for INR 2 crore (approx. 300,000 USD), and was retained by the franchise ahead of the 2016 auction.
ESPNcricinfo staff