Shardul Thakur picked 8 wickets in the ODI series vs West Indies.
After half-centuries from Ishan Kishan (77), Shubman Gill (85), Hardik Pandya (70*), and Sanju Samson (51) had helped India post a massive 351/5, Shardul Thakur with four wickets and Mukesh Kumar with three scalps shattered the top order of West Indies lineup.
Despite a 50-plus stand in the lower order between Alzarri Joseph and Gudakesh Motie, the hosts could only muster 151 runs and lost the game by 200 runs.
Speaking about the impact Shardul has had for the Indian team in this ODI series, Aakash Chopra mentioned how the Mumbai all-rounder receives very little credit for his bowling.
“In the previous match itself, Shardul took three wickets. He gets very limited credit for the way he bowls. I am trying to figure out how he takes so many wickets and why he is expensive, both things going hand-in-hand,” Chopra said on JioCinema.
For India, Thakur has the most wickets in ODIs since the 2019 World Cup. In the 32 games he’s featured in, the seamer has taken 52 wickets.
“If you are taking three wickets, the economy shouldn’t be much to worry about because 300 is going to be there as a target. He doesn’t give more than 6 runs per over, must be 6.1-6.2. The number of balls he bowls, and the chances of him getting a wicket are very bright.
We say it’s wicket-taking luck, but if you closely observe Shardul, the reason why he has the wicket-taking luck is because he bowls in those areas and he has a lot of belief. If you ever ask him how good are you? He would answer: “Equal to Dennis Lillee!”. That’s the confidence he has, and I love him for that,” he added.
West Indies and India will now clash in a five-match series that gets underway on August 3.