Former England pacer Steve Harmison has backed Sunrisers Hyderabad’s latest inductee, Harry Brook, to win the Player of the Tournament in the 16th edition of the Indian Premier League (IPL).
Brook will make his IPL debut this year after taking the cricket world by storm with his exploits for England in all formats. The 24-year-old was signed for a whopping Rs 13.25 crore by 2016 champions Sunrisers Hyderabad and is expected to play a key role in the middle order.
“I think he might start with an orange cap as well. I think Harry Brooke is going to be the best player. I think he could get Player of the Tournament,” Steve Harmison was quoted as saying by givemesport.
Brook’s limited-over statistics may not be as impressive as his red ball statistics, but his aggression in the middle order will make him a much-talked-about batter in the upcoming IPL.
“When you’re on a wave like he’s on, things just seem to fall into place. Sometimes they sort of nosedive and dive-bomb, but I don’t see it with Harry. For me, I think he might start with an orange cap because he’s in an orange kit.
“I’ve got a funny feeling if he’s around for the whole series. The Sunrisers, I think they’ve done some decent business. I think they’ve got some decent business over the line. I think Brooke could be the icing on the cake for them and I think he might just score the runs,” Harmison added.
Brook has played in the T20 Blast, the PSL, and the Big Bash in Australia during his 90-game T20 career. He scored a century in the Pakistan Super League, his highest score in the T20 format to date. He has a strike rate of 145.42 and an average of just under 27 in all three competitions.
If he continues to improve at this rate, it will be difficult to stop him from becoming one of the standout performers in the IPL 2023.