EXCLUSIVE | Lack of Opportunities was Getting to Me and MLC Came as a Breath of Fresh Air: Harmeet Singh

India’s 2012 Under-19 World Cup-winning star Harmeet Singh has taken giant strides in USA’s cricketing circles.

Harmeet left India in 2020, reasoning “lack of opportunities" in the Indian setup and has found a stable base in the USA with opportunities in the Major League Cricket.

Harmeet, 30, was the first player to be selected in the inaugural MLC draft as his Minor League Cricket franchise Seattle Orcas had immense faith in him. Harmeet returned the faith of the franchise with some important spells in the league stage that also led to his team reaching the final, albeit only to be smashed by Nicholas Pooran.

Harmeet, however, looks positively at things and if the opportunity arises, is looking to bowl against his former Ranji teammates Suryakumar Yadav and Shreyas Iyer donning the USA’s national jersey.

In an exclusive conversation with News 18 CricketNext, Harmeet talks about bowling against T20 greats in Kieron Pollard and Andre Russell, losing his family members to Covid-19, settling down in the US and qualifying to play for the US national side.

Excerpts:

You were the first draft pick in the MLC draft, how was the feeling?

Of course, it is a great feeling but I had been performing for the last two years since I was here. We won a Minor League also and all of that so all the stats I think went into consideration and then I got selected for Seattle Orcas. I played Minor League also for Seattle – we won the Minor League. And then I think Seattle had the faith in me to, you know, play the Major League also for them. So I think it all mattered in the end.

Your team came very close to winning the final, to win the tournament as such, but when Nicholas Pooran was hitting you and your other teammates what was your feeling then? He also hit you for three sixes so what was going through your mind then?

I think it was his day and the way he batted, I think, not many of us had an answer. But, I think it was like, you know, the two games we lost in the tournament, were both of individual brilliance. I think as a team we played really well. Even if you take the finals also, 180 was a good score on board and I think 140 of those were scored by Nicholas Pooran and, I think, on any other day this would have been a very close game or you know would have been, you know, looking at our bowling lineup out of the seven games, we’ve done really well in five games. So I think, you can’t take anything away from our bowling lineup. It’s just, you know, in T20 cricket one of those days does come. And it was his day.

How was the overall experience of this inaugural 2023 MLC Tournament? What were your takeaways from the tournament, considering it was the first tournament in USA?

It was, you know, for us, for me at least, I was very excited for the opportunity and I wanted a stage like this for a long time and for me personally it was a great feeling – the feeling that I belong there, where most of the games I did well, I had really good spells in the tournament. So I think, you know, that feeling where you know bowling against the best – that feeling was missing in my career, so I wanted to get out there and play the best, play amongst the best. I think that feeling was the best, that’s what you play cricket for.

I think, many more Major League (Cricket) years to come, but hopefully, you know, it’s a great start and hopefully the way that League started, the responses, it has been great, even the stadiums were full which you know is very uncommon in the first year of any franchise league. So I think, the response is there and all the major Indian (IPL) franchises are here, Australian franchises are here, it’s a very diverse atmosphere here. Even Pakistani players playing here! It can only happen in America. I think many brighter days for Major League (Cricket) to come.

You said that you were missing bowling against the best players. So how was it bowling against the likes of Kieron Pollard or Aaron Finch or Andre Russell for that matter?

That’s what I’m saying, like you know, when you see them on TV and I played a lot of cricket with a lot of the spinners who are currently playing for India also, so sometimes there’s a feeling that ‘you can do well’ but since you’ve not bowled to them enough, you don’t know how you will do. So bowling to them under pressure, bowling the tough overs against all these guys, that was the challenge and I love taking up challenges. I think, the way it turned out also, getting most of the guys out or even more dot balls, or bowling those crucial four-run overs or one-run overs. That all really matters in the context of the game. That really boosted my confidence after the tournament.

You recently made a change to your bowling action so why did you make that change and how beneficial was it for you, can you walk me through it?

It’s not recent. Recently I did maybe one or two things, but it’s been like this for the last couple of Ranji Seasons also. But only the non-bowling arm I’ve kept it a little lower for the last two or three years. Because of T20 cricket, you don’t want to give too much air on the ball, too much height on the ball, the air is fine, so for that, to get the height down and still be able to spin the ball, that’s all I’ve tried to make some changes. And also I keep thinking a lot about my bowling. So whatever is working, I’ve worked on different angles – using the crease and all of that.

At the end of the day, everybody is going hard at you. You can’t keep bowling quicker and quicker. So, you want to mix your pace, you want to be able to mix your lengths and you just want to be able to get one mis-hit from the batter. No one’s getting out of sleep or silly point. So, you want to be able to disguise whatever you’re bowling and get a mis-hit out of them or get them bowled or LBW. Yeah, all of that changes because I am just playing white-ball cricket, no red-ball cricket, whereas in India I was playing more red-ball cricket and very less to no white-ball cricket. So, most of the changes are because I’m playing the shorter format and not the red ball format.

To reflect a bit on your past, you lost your mother in Mumbai when you were in the USA. So how difficult was that time for you? I understand you couldn’t even meet her for a few months towards the end.

I came here in 2020 September and at that time also it was mid-Covid-19 and then after that, in 2021 April I lost her. That was the time we had the second (Covid-19) wave in India so it was very tough. I lost my grandfather the month after that. Those are the two people who really supported me in my cricket and took me everywhere, whenever I had games, practices, or whatever. So it was the toughest time in my life and me not being able to even go back to India, because of all the travel restrictions and everything and also, you know, when my mom passed away, it was like in an hour or so they had to cremate the body, so there was no time for me going back or anything. It was a very helpless situation.

But we were blessed with a baby girl after a couple of months in June and she’s now two years old. I see my mom in her. I think life is like that. Now we have a baby boy, so I think my mom and grandfather are here in them.

Talking about your Cricket in India you were hailed as the next Bishan Singh Bedi. From that, now you are a T20 specialist. So how do you see this development?

For me, cricket is like passion, so it doesn’t matter where I play. It’s more important that I play cricket. In India, there were not many opportunities for me. In 2009, I made my debut for Bombay and till 2018 when I left Bombay, I only got nine games and I had close to 40 wickets for them. But I did not get the opportunities which I felt I deserved. But life goes on.

Then I went to Tripura. I played a couple of seasons there which I did decently. I got all three formats to play at least. That was the first time after the Under-19 World Cup in 2012, that I played a full First-Class season (in 2018-19). So, the lack of opportunities was getting to me and I think this Major League opportunity came like a breath of fresh air for me. I needed something like a good start somewhere, where I was playing with the best. Tripura, no offence, but we were not the best of the teams in the domestic circuit. For me winning really matters when I’m playing Cricket. If I’m playing for a team which really wants to win, then I perform differently as well. So now that I’m here, there are teams which you know I can associate with which wants to win. That really affects my performance whenever I play. And in the last two years, wherever I’ve played here, I’ve done well.

Unfortunately, I did not get to bat much in the 2023 Major League Cricket but I’ve done well with the bat also. Hopefully, in the future, I get to bat also. But the role this year was to bowl and I figured out very early in the camp that bowling is going to be my priority in this team, so I better do it really well.

So, I wanted to create an impact which I decently did. It was very important that I come through and show at least myself that you know I belong here.

How do you remember your days playing Cricket in Mumbai? You have played with the likes of Suryakumar Yadav, and Suresh Raina if I’m not mistaken. Do you still miss those days?

Of course, playing for Bombay has always been a special feeling. But now that I’m here, I’m enjoying this challenge also. This is like a very – when you play with the likes of all the international players, even in the local tournaments in USA, a lot of international players come and play – so you are always challenged. The level of cricket is very good here also.

But then again, with all the other Bombay boys who I used to play with, most of the guys I do chat with and keep in touch with. Now that I’m here, some of them are also watching Major League (Cricket) so their response is also good, but I think in general, the response to the League has been very good.

So who are the players that you stay most connected with from India as of now?

Shardul (Thakur) and Sidhhesh (Lad) mostly. They have been my childhood friends, so we do keep chatting here and there. We go a long way back. We are from the same school.

And how different is it playing Cricket in the USA compared to India? A lot of players move to the USA to live that American dream. So, is it financially worth it to be there?

Cricketing wise now it’s worth it. When I had come, it was just the start. Now all the guys are earning twice or thrice from where I had started. I think the sky is the limit, and the US sports market is also very big. Plus, already with the Major League (Cricket), there’s a lot of hype. So I think it will only get better as the years go on. Right now, I think, it’s very liveable and you can say comfortable at least. It has gotten to a point where it’s comfortable now. Before it was paycheck to paycheck, but right now we’re at a stage where it’s getting to being comfortable.

You’ll be qualifying for the US national team. So, what are your plans subsequently going ahead?

This month itself, I’ll qualify, sometime mid-august. So, I’m excited. It’s just that, you know, whenever the opportunity arises, I just look at it as an opportunity where I can do my absolute best for whichever team I’m playing for. So, I think even the (2024 T20) World Cup is around the corner so it’s exciting times. It’s a very crucial phase for USA Cricket. You can really go up the ladder if we do well in the (2024 T20) World Cup. I think it’s important that we fare well in the World Cup.

And do you fathom any chances – you might be selected in the World Cup squad and bowl to the likes of Suryakumar in the World Cup?

If it happens, it happens! But it’ll be great to bowl again to guys like him. If Shreyas is there, Shreyas, and all of these guys.

And do you have any plans to play in another T20 league? The way world cricket is going on currently, do you intend to participate in BBL or CPL or anywhere?

Now my travel status is sort of easier, so I have a travel permit now. Because, when I had come here, my VISA was applied for while I was here, so I couldn’t travel much, but now I can travel. So now I’m eligible to and also available to play leagues outside.

Also, initially, we had a contract that 10 months we had to stay in the country to qualify for the USA. Now I am almost done with all of that, so now I can play leagues outside of the USA also. Hopefully, I’ll get a call from some other league in the near future.