Shardul Thakur still dreads thinking about it. The right-arm pacer and a handy lower-order batsman was just one good stroke away from becoming a hero for Chennai Super Kings (CSK) in the final of this year's IPL against Mumbai Indians (MI). But he couldn't do so after being trapped in front by Lasith Malinga when defending champions CSK needed two runs off the final delivery to retain that prestigious title.
"Paoon nikalke marna chahiye tha (I should have got my leg out of the way and blasted the ball)," Thakur told Indian Express, regretting the shot he played and recalling the whole drama that surrounded him at the time.
"When I walked to the crease, the only thing running through my mind was to win. It’s (Rajiv Gandhi International Stadium, Uppal) a big ground, if the ball goes in the deep, there are chances to get two runs."
"He (Malinga) was bowling round the wicket and square-leg was up, and if he missed the yorker, I had aimed to hit over square-leg. I got two off the first ball," added the Indian pacer, who was sent in ahead of experienced Harbhajan Singh and Deepak Chahar when Shane Watson was run out and another four runs were required of the last two balls.
Thakur got two off the very first one he faced before non-striker Ravindra Jadeja came up to the other end and told him not to go for an aerial shot.
"The plan was to keep the ball grounded and run, just run. I had aimed to play to the bada (long) side of the ground. The thought process was that if the ball hits the bat, one run will come easily, but ideally the ball should go in the place where we can get two runs," he said.
Malinga, before that slower ball, had not bowled a single one on the day. It will have been very tough for more accomplished batsmen to gauge the sudden variation at that stage, so what chances did Thakur have?
"I should've taken my left leg out of the way and tried for a big one. I have the capability of hitting a six. I go through such thoughts now. In such tense moments, someone is going to lose, someone is going to win. Unfortunately, it was us who had to lose. You never know a day may come when I will score the winning run."
"When the ball hit my pad, I just ran and didn’t look at the umpire. It was a chance to become a hero, but cricket doesn’t stop here. I hope next time I will not squander such a chance. I missed it, what can be done now! Bad luck, the ball didn’t connect," he concluded.
