A gun in Beautiful Hands

Miss Sumeera

Miss Rabia

Hashim Amla

Full name Hashim Muhammad Amla

Born March 31, 1983, Durban, Natal

Current age 29 years 102 days

Major teams South Africa, Dolphins, Essex, KwaZulu-Natal

Playing role Top-order batsman

Batting style Right-hand bat

Bowling style Right-arm medium, Right-arm offbreak

Relation Brother - AM Amla

Hashim Muhammad Amla's Profile

An elegant strokeplayer blessed with the temperament to make the most of his talent, Hashim Amla is the first South African of Indian descent to reach the national squad - his grandparents migrated from Gujarat - and he shares the penchant for wristy leg-side flicks that ooze off his bat. His elevation to the South Africa side was a poorly kept secret after he reeled off four centuries in his first eight innings of the 2004-05 season, after being appointed captain of the Dolphins (formerly Natal) at the tender age of 21. His older brother by four years, Ahmed, made his first-class debut two seasons before Hashim, but there is little doubt that the younger Amla is the better player. He is also a devout Muslim whose requests to have logos promoting alcohol removed from his playing gear have been successful so far. Amla toured New Zealand with the South African Under-19 team in 2000-01, he captained South Africa at the 2002 Under-19 World Cup, and after starring for the A team, made his Test debut against India in 2004-05. He was not an instant success, with serious questions emerging about his technique as he mustered 36 runs in four innings against England later that season. 

 

 When he was handed a second chance he made it count with 149 against New Zealand at Cape Town, helping guide South Africa to a draw. He remained a consistent performer, if not as prolific as South Africa would like, with fifties against Pakistan in 2007, but saved his best for the following tour to India where he racked up 307 runs in the three Tests. It included a majestic 159 in Chennai, his second score of 150 or more, and was followed by a pugnacious 81 in the second innings, in conditions trying thanks to the weather, the pitch and the attack. In the summer of 2008, he got his name on the honours board at Lord's with a sublime century, and in the process silenced all whimpers about his pedigree for the longest version. Still, doubts remained over his ability in the shorter formats, and while Twenty20 cricket was never going to be his strong point, he developed a remarkable appetite for ODI excellence, when given an extended run in the side. He contributed crucial fifties during South Africa's heist of Australia in 2008-09, but his inability to convert them into big knocks meant the likes of AB de Villiers and JP Duminy stole the headlines. Amla righted that with a couple of big scores in the ODI series that followed, as Australia were humbled in all formats at home. A consistent run of scores followed before a strong home series against England.

 

His biggest year in international cricket, though, was in 2010, when he was outstanding in both Tests and ODIs, scoring over 1000 runs in both forms at 75-plus averages. It started with a magnum opus tour of India, where the hosts threw everything at him, but could not find a way past or around his monk-like patience and ability to soak pressure. In the two-Test series he scored 490 runs and dismissed just once. In ODIs he combined quick scoring with stunning consistency, scoring five centuries and four fifties in 15 innings, all the while scoring at over a run a ball. With his consistency and skills in both forms of the game, Amla is already looked upon as Jacques Kallis' successor in the role of middle-order bulwark.

A quiet man, there is no doubting Amla's immense hunger for runs. He remains a candidate to become South Africa's second non-white Test captain after Ashwell Prince, and possesses the most impressive beard in all the game. 

 

 

 

Amber Khan

Brent Arnel

Full name Brent John Arnel

Born January 3, 1979, Te Awamutu, Waikato

Current age 33 years 187 days

Major teams New Zealand, Northern Districts

Batting style Right-hand bat

Bowling style Right-arm medium-fast

Brent Arnel's Profile

As a 10-year-old, Brent Arnel was kicked out of junior cricket because he bowled too fast and he was soon up against college-level players. Being pushed into the deep end so early, he recalls, helped him in the long run. Arnel is a product of a small-town upbringing, but access to facilities was never a problem because his parents owned a few indoor cricket schools in the area. It later came down to a choice between a career in cricket or basketball but he chose the former when Northern Districts came calling. He made his debut in the 2006-07 season, playing four games, but his best performance was reserved for the following season. Arnel topped the wicket charts in the State Championships with 33 wickets and his performance earned him a place in the New Zealand A squad for the tour of India. His impressive performances for the A squad against the England Lions in 2009 led to a call-up to the New Zealand Test squad against India. He didn't get a game, but earned another Test call-up the following year, against Bangladesh, as a replacement for the injured Andy McKay.

Varun Aaron

Full name Varun Raymond Aaron

Born October 29, 1989, Singhbhum, Bihar (now Jharkhand)

Current age 22 years 252 days

Major teams India, Australian Centre of Excellence, Delhi, Delhi Daredevils, India Emerging Players, Jharkhand, Jharkhand Under-19s, Kolkata Knight Riders

Playing role Bowler

Batting style Right-hand bat

Bowling style Right-arm medium-fast

Varun Aaron's Profile

In a country starved of genuinely quick bowlers, Varun Aaron grabbed the headlines when he hit 153 kph during the 2010-11 Vijay Hazare Trophy final against Gujarat. Hailing from Jharkhand, Aaron has been part of the MRF Pace Academy in Chennai since he was spotted by a talent scout at the age of 15. In his first year with the Jharkhand Under-19 side, he also played for East Zone and was later part of the India Under-19 camp. He grew up admiring Andy Roberts, and pace has been his focus since his teens. This led to two stress fractures of the back soon after he made his Ranji Trophy debut in the 2008-09 season for Jharkhand, but he continues to focus on bowling quick. Possessing a smooth run-up and a repeatable action, Aaron consistently bowls in excess of 140 kph from close to the stumps with decent control. Having earlier been part of the Kolkata Knight Riders squad, he made his IPL debut in 2011 for Delhi Daredevils.

 He was part of the India Emerging Players squad that went to Australia in 2011, and after impressing there earned a call-up to the India ODI squad for the series in England. Though he did not get a game on that trip, he made his India debut in Mumbai, when England went over to the subcontinent for a return ODI series in October 2011. He made his Test debut a month later, against West Indies, also in Mumbai.