Harmeet Singh

Delivering with a still head, equipped with a loopy delivery, strapped with a big heart to flight the ball, Harmeet Singh attracted instant praise from coaches and players alike. The former Indian batting stalwart Dilip Sardesai compared Harmeet to his contemporary and spin legend Bishen Bedi the first time he witnessed the Mumbai youngster in action. By 19, Harmeet had featured in two Under-19 World Cups. In his first attempt, in 2010, he proved far too expensive for the team management to retain him in the team regularly. Hungry and resilient to prove his worth two years later, his economy rate of 3.02 was one of the best, despite him missing a couple of matches due to being sick. Importantly, he was one of the main pillars of India winning the title.

Spotted by Shivaji Park Gymkhana as a nine-year-old, Harmeet was coached by the likes of Padmakar Shivalkar, the former Mumbai left-arm spinner, and Praveen Amre, the former India batsman and ex-Mumbai coach at the academy. He was also the inaugural recipient of the Ramakant Achrekar Scholarship when he was 16. Harmeet led Mumbai at the U-16 and U-19 levels before making a spectacular first-class debut, when he grabbed a seven-wicket match haul in Mumbai's comfortable victory against Himachal Pradesh. His maiden five-for came in his third match, against Tamil Nadu in the 2010-11 season. Oddly, he was ignored the following season.

After the 2013 IPL spot-fixing controversy broke, a bookie had alleged that he had tried to get Harmeet involved but didn't strike a deal as the player was too young. Harmeet was subsequently investigated by the BCCI, but cleared of any wrongdoing.

Later, he moved to the USA and was picked in their squad for the 2024 T20 World Cup.
Nagraj Gollapudi