Shardul Thakur made his Test debut for India as far back as 2018 but has ventilated himself in only 11 Tests until now. Because of such hindrances, the 32 years old bowling allrounder is left thinking as to what is the wrong he has done.
More often than not, when he tries to recall and rationalise the reason for being in and out of the national side, considering the innings at No.8 he played with the bat and the ball, quite hard.
Since the mid-order or rather lower middle-order bowling of Shardul Thakur Joe is occasionally a neatest of the Neats, most of the situations feature him as the fourth pacer. Hence he is not as foul of overs as the main strike bowlers and while batting down the order, there is always the target of running out of batsmen. Yet even within these constraints, Shardul has performed when required.
‘One has to get those many opportunities as well to stamp himself. There are people who have got 70-80 games and then suddenly you say ‘he is a brilliant player. He has done well for India’ but the fact is he has got 70-80 games for India. I have been a part of the Indian team for the last seven-eight years, but how many games have I played? So whatever limited opportunities that I have got, I have given my best. Somethings it happens for me, sometimes it does. It’s a team sport. I succeed because of the support of teammates and I also choke because of the encouragement of teammates,’ said Shardul on the eve of the Irani Cup. This will be his first tournament since he had ankle surgery after the IPL in June and a three month rehabilitation course at the NCA in Bengaluru.
Shardul has always been someone who rises to a challenge and takes pleasure in situations that are difficult. “Challenges are what excite me especially when it comes to competitive sports. That has always been my high when I am on the field. It is quite easy to say that I have done really well in easy circumstances, but when the competition is tough and the team is in trouble and you are able to help your team is what describes your character. I seek such chances,” he said.
It is worth noting that if you consider his numbers with respect to overseas Tests, there is more to anger than meets the eye. Out of the 11 Tests he has played, nine have been in the Australia-England-South Africa circle and because of most of his Test runs 331 including 4 fifties and also 31 wickets he has been one of those countries.
His first taste of Test cricket outside India was the iconic win at Brisbane in 2021 where India won the series 2-1. He contributed significantly by scoring 67 in the first innings, and took seven wickets in that test match.
He played two Test matches in England in the same year and made two fifty runs scoring 57 and 60 reaches the Oval Test which India won by 157 runs then and take a 2 – 1 lead in the series. In 2022, in a match against South Africa in Johannesburg, he heavyweighted 7/66. He entered into the arena in the 2023 WTC final against Australia and had a stroke of 51 runs to keep Team India in the game before finally succumbing to defeat. The last time he played a Test for India was in December 2023 against South Africa in Centurion, after which he was dropped for the second Test in Cape Town.
Irani Cup and the Ranji Trophy matches will be very important for Shardul to prove himself fit and put up his hand to make a case for being in the team for Australia. Since Hardik Pandya is not interested in playing whites, and Nitish Kumar Reddy and Shivam Dube still have a lot to show in Duleep Trophy concerning their all-rounder abilities, it will be expected that the Mumbai boy will be able to secure the bowling all-rounder’s position if he performs well in the next few matches.
Which is to say that, Shardul added, we have been fitter as a combination (fourth fast bowling allrounder) in overseas conditions. .I have played some innings of No. 8 position. Some of them were good under pressure too. Yes, I have batted in those situations. Yes, I have bowled well as well…taken important wickets for the side. “I am really awaiting that tour,” said Shardul.
He added: “But yes, right now the focus is on the Irani Cup game. And the first few Ranji games as well. I am playing after a long time, so my complete attention has to be towards these games. But subconsciously, yes…the Australia tour is also there which is on my mind. It is a place where the conditions are quite tough and the audience is always part of the game. That tour is something which player would like to look forward.”
