10 Cricketers Of Indian Origin Who Played International Cricket Against India

Cricket being the most popular sport in India, cricketers are one of the most celebrated people in the nation. Hence, a majority of upcoming athletes in the sport assume cricketers as their role models growing up and want to imbibe their skills and qualities. But there is an abundant number of people in India wanting to be cricketers, but not all get a chance to make it to the top.

Thus, they use their skills and translate them to shatter records and accumulate numbers for some other team. While the lack of opportunities are not the only reason, family or other unavoidable causes could also cause a player to shift to some other nation and hone their talent. There are several notable Indian origin cricketers, who went on to ply their trade for some other country.

We take a look at ten such cricketers of Indian origin but played for some other country:

Hashim Amla:

Hashim Amla remains one player who the Indians will have wanted in their ranks. While Hashim Amla endured a forgettable debut, the right-handed batsman staged a remarkable comeback by working on his game in the domestic circuit. Amla is the fastest batsman to reach 2000, 3000, 4000, 5000, 6000, and 7000 runs in ODI cricket.

The former South African captain, belonging to Surat, Gujarat, remains the only Proteas cricketer to slam a triple-hundred in Test cricket. Amla retired from international cricket in 2019, featuring in 124 Tests, 181 ODIs, and 44 T20Is. But the 38-year old continues to play in the English domestic circuit.

Monty Panesar:

Though Monty Panesar produced some notable performances for England, he could not fix a permanent place for himself. Monty Panesar’s most significant achievement for England was to spin his country to victory on the Indian soil in 2012 as he combined with Graeme Swann to deliver a crushing series victory.

The left-arm spinner’s father Paramjit Singh and mother Gursharan Kaur migrated from Punjab to Luton in 1979. Monty Panesar was born three years later and went on to ply his trade for England. The 39-year old has so far featured in 50 Tests and 26 ODIs from 2006 to 2013, taking 191 wickets combined. The Bedfordshire-born cricketer now works as a commentator.

Nasser Hussain:

Former England skipper Nasser Hussain and presently a reputed commentator, is one of the prominent men from the cricketing fraternity belonging to Indian origin but playing for some other nation. Nasser Hussain might be a below-par captain; however, he was an excellent batsman. He took birth in Chennai in 1968 before his father moved the family to England to derive the benefits of the English educational system.

Nasser Hussain featured in 96 Tests and 88 ODIs from 1989 to 2004. The right-handed batsman slammed 5664 runs in Tests and 2332 in ODIs. The 53-year old famously scored a century in his last Test as he guided England to a crushing victory over New Zealand at the Lord’s, while chasing 282 in the fourth innings.

Shivnarine Chanderpaul:

Shivnarine Chanderpaul was always known for his eye-catching and unorthodox stance, but it has earned him a truckload of runs and has become one of the unsung heroes of cricket. Shivnarine Chanderpaul debuted in international cricket back in 1994 and has played an enormous 164 Tests, accumulated 11867 runs. The southpaw also played 268 ODIs to score 8778 runs.

Chanderpaul was born to Indo-Guyanese parents Kamraj and Uma Chanderpaul in Guyana in 1974. The former West Indian skipper’s parents moved from India to the West Indies under the indentured labour system. The 46-year old notably became the first Indo-Caribbean cricketer to feature in 100 Tests.

Ish Sodhi:

While New Zealand‘s Ish Sodhi has featured in 17 Tests, he remains a limited-overs specialist and has delivered some notable performances. Ish Sodhi made his international debut back in 2013 and has played 33 ODIs and 57 T20Is so far. However, the wrist-spinner’s strongest suit remains T20 cricket, as he has taken 73 wickets in the format at 21.72 with two four-wicket hauls.

Ish Sodhi’s roots extend to Ludhiana in Punjab, where he took birth back in 1992. The 28-year old moved to New Zealand with his family when he was four years old. Sodhi is also active in franchise cricket, having plied his trade for the Rajasthan Royals, Adelaide Strikers, Jamaica Tallawahs, and St Kitts and Nevis Patriots and many other sides.

Jeetan Patel:

While Jeetan Patel’s international career lasted from 2005 to 2017, he could never feature in a remarkable number of games for New Zealand. Jeetan Patel, who has roots in Gujarat, debuted back in 2005 and managed only 24 Tests and 43 ODIs. The right-arm off-spinner collected 65 Test scalps at 47.35 and 49 ODI wickets at 34.51.

But Jeetan Patel remained a constant fixture in county cricket, gaining plenty of opportunities from Warwickshire. The 41-year old has 892 wickets in 293 first-class games at 32.77. Patel is currently serving as England’s spin-bowling coach.

Ravi Bopara:

Ravi Bopara was yet another promising batsman who could not go the distance in his international career. Ravi Bopara often played as an opener or a lower-order batsman; however, he could not attain the consistency level required for international cricket. Ravi Bopara’s last of 120 ODIs came in the 2015 World Cup, while he played his final Test came in 2012.

The 36-year old was reportedly born in an immigrant Sikh family and while his international comeback, Bopara continues to play franchise cricket. The seam-bowling all-rounder has featured for franchises like Kings XI Punjab, SunRisers Hyderabad, Karachi Kings, Dhaka Dynamites, Durban Heat, Sydney Sixers, Multan Sultans, and many more.

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Senuran Muthusamy:

South Africa’s Senuran Muthusamy was picked for a gruelling India tour in 2019, where he gave promising performances, but it could not result in wins. Instead, South Africa suffered a 3-0 loss in the Test series, mainly due to their inability to play spin. Senuran Muthusamy played two out of three Tests and picked two scalps and made 98 runs.

The left-arm spinner’s maiden Test wicket was the Indian captain Virat Kohli. The 27-year old might have been born in Durban; however, his roots extend to Nagapattinam, a small state in Tamil Nadu. Unfortunately, after South Africa’s three-Test tour of India, Muthusamy could not get a chance to play international cricket. But as a young player, he should be optimistic about getting an opportunity in the future.

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Devendra Bishoo:

West Indian leg-spinner Devendra Bishoo made his first international appearance back in the 2011 World Cup. He picked figures of three wickets for 34 runs in his ten overs against England, exploiting the sub-continent conditions to significant effect. But Bishoo has not been able to seal his spot in the team, remaining in and out of the side.

The 35-year old, who has an East Indian Origin, averages only 37 in 36 Tests and 43 in 42 ODIs. On the other hand, the veteran leggie has taken seven wickets in as many T20Is. The Guyanese has not played for the West Indies since March 2019 as the selectors looked to have moved on from him.

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Ramnaresh Sarwan:

Ramnaresh Sarwan is yet another Indian-origin West Indian cricketer and was a highly successful batsman. Ramnaresh Sarwan made his debut back in 2000 and played international cricket till 2013, featuring in 87 Tests and 181 ODIs. The former West Indian skipper is also one of the few batsmen to strike six fours in an over in a One-day international.

Sarwan made over 10000 runs in international cricket and his Test best of 291 came against England in 2009. The Guyana-born former cricketer is also a handy leg-spin bowler, having once claimed figures of 4 for 37 in an innings. He succeeded Brian Lara as captain after the 2007 World Cup; however, it did not last long.

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