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Shardul Thakur slammed his second first-class century on Friday after a fifty in the first innings to save Mumbai in the Ranji Trophy clash against Jammu and Kashmir.
Shardul Thakur (L) and Tanush Kotian (PC: BCCI).
India pace all-rounder Shardul Thakur has given India selectors and IPL franchises’ decision-makers a lot to think about with his twin match-saving knocks for Mumbai in the 2024-25 Ranji Trophy.
On Friday, in the third innings, he came to bat when Mumbai were in big trouble 91/6, leading Jammu and Kashmir by only five runs. He notched a century in just 105 balls with 15 boundaries. It was just his second ton in First-Class cricket.
When he reached three figures, Mumbai’s score was 250/7 with a lead at a substantial 164 runs.
Similarly, in the first innings on Thursday, Thakur came to bat in the 16th over with the score reading 42/6. Shreyas Iyer got out at the other end soon after but he played 57 balls to score 51 which took Mumbai to a respectful 120.
He had gone unsold in the IPL 2025 auction only a few months ago. It was the first auction since his debut in the tournament in 2014 that he couldn’t find a team. In 2024, he was with the Chennai Super Kings on a contract worth Rs. 4 crore.
Then, Thakur was ignored by India’s Test side for the tour of Australia, where he had done well in the previous series. Rohit Sharma and Gautam Gambhir’s team went with youngster Nitish Kumar Reddy, who did well with the bat but couldn’t offer enough with the ball as the fourth seamer. India lost the series 3-1.
Others should talk about my quality: Shardul Thakur
After the end of the first day’s play, Thakur said that anyone can do well in easy situations while he loves performing in ‘adverse situations’ which matter more. He had appealed to decision-makers in the country to give more chances to people who have ‘quality’.
“What can I talk about my quality? Others should talk about it. They should see that if someone has quality, he should be given more chances. I like batting in difficult situations. In easy situations, everyone does well, but how you put up the show in adverse situations matters. I see tough situations as a challenge and always think about how to overcome that challenge.”
“You have to forget whatever has happened in the past; it is not going to change. It is important to be in the present and think about what you can do in the near future,” he said.
