Revealed: Heart Touching Story Behind "JP Nattu" On T Natarajan's SRH Jersey

T Natarajan, a name that has been on everyone’s mind ever since his first ball in IPL 2020 this year. T Natarajan or Thangarasu Natarajan is a pacer who hails from a small town called Salem in Tamil Nadu. He has upsurged from rags to riches in the blink of an eye in this year’s Indian Premier League. However, his cricketing journey has a lot more worth interesting anecdotes that go on to prove, ‘Nothing is impossible.’

T Natarajan began his journey in cricket, playing tennis-ball cricket in the streets of Tamil Nadu. He is a left-arm pacer and from his very childhood, Natarajan mastered the art of bowling inch-perfect Yorker, a delivery that even the greatest of bowlers in international cricket, find hard to deliver on a consistent basis. He made his debut in first-class cricket back in 2015 and since then, the pacer has gone on to clinch 64 wickets in first-class cricket.

Natarajan first raised eyebrows when he bowled six back-to-back yorkers to Abhinav Mukund and Washington Sundar in a Tamil Nadu Premier League (TNPL) game back in 2016. He was touted as India’s Mustafizur Rahman because of his death-over bowling. In the 2017 IPL auctions, he was bought by Kings XI Punjab (KXIP) for INR 3 crore and he played only six games for them in IPL 2017.

T Natarajan: A Flag-Bearer Of India’s Pace Attack In The Years To Come

T Natarajan was released by KXIP the following season and eventually, SunRisers Hyderabad (SRH) bought him for INR 40 Lakh in the IPL 2018 auction. The franchise did not give him a place in the first XI for his first two seasons and Natarajan warmed the bench in IPL 2018 and IPL 2019. However, he did not succumb to the pressure and kept performing in the domestic circuit. He helped Tamil Nadu reach the final of the Syed Mushtaq Ali tournament this year.

All these performances earned him a place in Hyderabad’s first XI this year and the young pacer has gone on to prove every worth of the penny spent on him. In his first game for SRH this year, he picked up the RCB skipper, Virat Kohli, a wicket that is a dream wicket for a lot of bowlers in world cricket.

He gained a lot of attention after Tuesday’s game against Delhi Capitals, wherein, he bowled inch-perfect yorkers and helped SRH defend the total and earn their first points in IPL 2020. After the game, Australian legend, Brett Lee came up with a Tweet to hail the young Indian pacer and this just goes on to show how good he has been so far.

After all the media attention that he has gained, a specific aspect about T Natarajan has been going viral and that is none other than his jersey name. T Natarajan donned the name, JP Nattu, in Wednesday’s clash against Delhi Capitals. Fans on the internet have been keen to know as to who JP Nattu is and we finally have an answer to the question.

Revealed: Heart Touching Story Behind “JP Nattu” On T Natarajan’s SRH Jersey

The name on Natarajan’s jersey, JP Nattu, is of none other than his mentor, Jayprakash, who first spotted him in his early days and inducted him in professional cricket. Natarajan, as a mark of gratitude, donned his name on the back of the jersey to pay homage to his mentor for all that he has helped him achieve over the years.

'JP Nattu': 'JP' on his jersey is a show of gratitude to his mentor Jayaprakash who first spotted his talent in tennis ball cricket. #SRHvDC #natarajan #IPL @Natarajan_91 pic.twitter.com/jRS7dcg0J7

— Santhosh Kumar (@giffy6ty) September 29, 2020

Natarajan’s effort helped SunRisers Hyderabad grab their first win of IPL 2020 as they capitalized on Delhi Capitals by 15 runs and tasted their maiden victory in this year’s IPL. Next up, they will face, the three-time IPL champions, Chennai Super Kings, on Matchday 14 of the Indian Premier League at the Dubai International Cricket Stadium.