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Xtra Time Web Desk : Former India off spinner and currently the spin bowling scout at Gujarat Titans Ashish Kapoor should be a happy man to see Sai Sudharsan make an impressive debut in IPL 2022 match against Punjab Kings on Friday night at the Brabourne stadium. It was Ashish who spotted Sudharsan and got him into the Titans camp.

Sudharsan was drafted into the GT playing XI at the last moment after Vijay Shankar had to sit out with a back spasm. The youngster showed good temperament while scoring 35 runs off 30 balls before being caught by Mayank Agarwal off Rahul Chahar.

Sudarshan hails from a sporting family. His father Bhardwaj R was an international athlete who represented the country in the SAF Games in Dhaka while mother Usha Bhardwaj has represented the state in volleyball

Sudarshan always had an interest in sports since he came from a sporting background. He started playing cricket an early age and made his way into the state U14 side for the South Zone tournament. He was the fourth highest run scorer with four fifties from five matches. In the Vijay Merchant trophy that followed, he averaged 76. A string of good performances saw him get selected for U-19 team.

Former India cricketer Ashish Kapoor, who comes from the same school as Sudharsan and was also the U-19 selector got him into the U-19 Challenger Trophy. Couple of hundreds against Jharkhand and Vidarbha in the U19 Challenger Trophy saw everyone take notice. He soon opened the batting for India A in the 2019-20 Under-19 Challenger Trophy alongside Yashasvi Jaiswal.

The 20-year-old left-handed batter was the breakout star of Tamil Nadu Premier League 2021, as he finished as the second-highest run-scorer with 358 runs from eight innings. He had an average of 71.60 and a strike rate of 143.77, helping Lyca Kovai Kings reach the Eliminator.