Who’s Harry Singh? That’s the question on cricket buffs’ lips ever since he came on as a substitute fielder for England in the first Test against Sri Lanka. The Indian-origin player filled in for Harry Brook when the England batter left the field at Old Trafford on August 21.
Lancashire’s Singh, Charlie Barnard and Kesh Fonseka were selected for 12th-man duties for the first Test. After Sri Lanka opted to bat, Singh soon took the field for England, only for the Indian media to scramble to identify the player.
Turns out that he’s the son of Rudra Pratap Singh (Senior), the left-arm seamer, who played for India and represented Uttar Pradesh in the domestic circuit. This RP Singh is not the same player, who was part of the 2007 T20 World Cup winning team.
The India connection
Harry Singh’s father, RP Singh Senior, bowled for India in the two One-Day Internationals against Australia in 1986, claiming a wicket. He became a coach after retirement and was associated with Lancashire and the England and Wales Cricket Board (ECB). In the 1990s, RP Singh relocated to England.
Born in England in 2004, Harry attended Clitheroe Royal Grammar School, Lancashire. His stint with the Urmston Cricket Club fetched his a spot in the county’s academy in 2020 before landing a regular place in Lancashire’s Second XI two years later.
Harry’s impressive scores fetched a call-up to England’s U-19 team for the home series against Sri Lanka and later toured Australia (he scored 67 in the first Youth Test). At 18, he signed a rookie contract with Lancashire and made his List A debut in the One-Day Cup, playing all seven matches.
“I started playing cricket at the age of four, joined Lancashire’s pathway system at eight and have been on the Lancs Academy since I was 15 — so it has been a long journey for me to reach this point,” Harry told the LancsTV Studio, soon after signing the rookie contract last year.
As opening batter, Harry has impressed Lancashire and England. The role as a substitute in Sri Lanka could well be the start of a fruitful career.
