Thakur's 7/61 are the best bowling figures by an Indian vs South Africa in Tests.
Shardul Thakur has been honored with many nicknames on social media and by his teammates, thanks to his abilities to pick crucial wickets and make runs when India is in trouble. "Lord Shardul", "Beefy" are some of the nicknames that are associated with Shardul Thakur and the Mumbaikar revealed the story of how he got the ‘Lord’ moniker.
In an interview with Indian team bowling coach Paras Mhambrey, Shardul Thakur revealed that the moniker stuck to him during the home Test series against England after they had returned from Australia.
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"Seriously don't know who started calling me Lord. But I'm sure it started in a home series against England after we returned from Australia... Just before the IPL. It was a series, where I got a lot of success and mostly after I got two consecutive wickets in an over... From there the name arrived," Shardul said in a video shared by BCCI.tv.
Shedding light on his success mantra, Shardul said: "When I enter the ground, everything is about confidence and self-belief for me. I go in with full confidence, there is no half measures. I think it's simple and small mantra for my success in recent days. I would like to continue that. I always play to win. Even when I look at other players, I like those who like to win their games to the team. I was just trying to pitch the ball at the right spots. There was natural help from the pitch. I got 7 wickets. I am very happy to have contributed to the team.”
Shardul also said that Sachin Tendulkar praising him on social media was a huge morale booster. He said, "It's my pleasure that the god himself has tweeted about me. He is a fellow Mumbaikar. I have played with him a few games. He has always supported me. It's always good to hear from him, it's a big morale booster."