England’s favourite Harry makes India brood

In 2024, he pulled out of the England tour of India comprising five Test matches and the IPL taking compassionate leave so that he could spend time with his ailing paternal grandmother, who subsequently passed away. The reason for his no-show in the 2025 IPL was his intention to get ready for national duty. More than sympathy, Brook’s absence from the two editions of the cash-rich league fetched scathing comments from cricket pundits, including the likes of Akash Chopra.

Even before that, Brook garnered unwanted attention when he attributed his struggles in the T20I series in India early this year to smog. He scored 17 off 14 balls in the first T20I in Kolkata before being cleaned up by leg spinner Varun Chakravarthy. “I didn’t face (Ravi) Bishnoi but Chakravarthy is an exceptionally good bowler,” he said after the match. “He’s tough to pick. I think actually with the smog the other night, it was a lot harder to pick as well,” he went on to say.

The comments drew sharp reactions with former India ace off-spinner R Ashwin particularly harsh on the young English batter. Ashwin even questioned Brook’s ball-reading abilities and opined the batter’s career seems to be sinking. What did not help Brook’s cause was his comments on Indian food and life of the people in the country. His middling performance in his only IPL stint in 2023 added to his woes. He was bought for Rs 13.25 crore by Sunrisers Hyderabad then but the batter could manage only 190 runs from 11 matches at an average of 21.11. The highlight of the season for Brook was his century against Kolkata Knight Riders.