Virat Singh became a sensational name when Sunrisers Hyderabad roped him in during the IPL Auction in February. Sharing his first name with current Indian captain, Virat Kohli, and his state with the former captain, MS Dhoni, Virat was born on December 8, 1997, in Jamshedpur, Jharkhand.
Virat stepped into the world of cricket at an early age. After a gleaming domestic season, Virat made it big when he received his SRH cap recently.
Here are five interesting facts about the left-hander batter – Virat Singh who would like to mark his presence in the IPL with the bat:
The Singh Brothers
Siblings playing cricket together is no novel thing, but surely, an inspiring journey together. Virat has a brother named Vishal Singh, who also represents Jharkhand in First-Class cricket. He made his first-class debut in 2014-15 Vijay Hazare Trophy. The duo played in the 2012-13 BCCI interzonal competition together.
Consistent Performances at U-19 Level
At the age of 14, he made his Under-19 debut for Jharkhand in 2012-13 Vindoo Mankad Trophy. In five innings, he scored 152, just behind his brother Vishal (179) and Shasheem Rathour (208).
In 2013-14 Vijay Hazare Trophy, he marked his domestic arrival for Jharkhand. His form in one day persuaded the selectors to pick him up for Sayed Mushtaq Ali Trophy. However, his SMAT performance was sloppy and had managed only 90 runs in seven fixtures. But Singh’s inconsistency in Deodhar Trophy could not shove him into the U19 squad.
Ranji Trophy Debut
He made his Ranji Trophy debut in 2014 and scored his maiden ton against Kerala in his second game. In 2019, he was named in India C’s squad for Deodhar Trophy.
Successful Cooch Behar Trophy
At the age of 15, Virat captained his team in Cooch Behar Trophy. The tournament was a stepping stone for him. Finished off the tournament with 508 runs with two centuries in five matches. He notched up 190 against Andhra Pradesh and remained unbeaten on 120 against Assam.
IPL
Sunrisers Hyderabad bought him for a price of Rs 1.90 crore. He made his debut for SRH against Mumbai Indians. In that match, he scored only 11 runs at a strike rate of 91.7.