'Lord's World Cup looks almost confirmed' - Aakash Chopra feels Shardul Thakur could be India's fourth seamer at ODI World Cup 2023

Former India opener Aakash Chopra feels that there is a vacant spot for a fourth seamer in India's World Cup squad and Shardul Thakur might have made that his own after a memorable campaign in the Caribbean. The all-rounder made a mark in the three-match ODI series, throwing his hat into the ring for the 50-over World Cup in October-November. Thakur picked up eight wickets across the three matches and finished as the highest wicket-taker in the series.

Shardul has always had the knack of picking up wickets against the run of play. His ability to break partnerships in the middle overs could hold India in good stead as they get ready to exclusively host a 50-over World Cup for the first time.  Meanwhile, Chopra opined that Shardul has gone ahead of Umran Malik to fill that position.

"You need to praise Lord Thakur a lot. Lord Thakur has picked up the most wickets for India in ODIs since the 2019 World Cup. The good thing is that there is a place vacant for the World Cup. The question was who can be the fourth fast bowler after (Jasprit) Bumrah, (Mohammad) Shami, and (Mohammed) Siraj," Chopra said in a video on his YouTube channel.

"It seems like Lord Thakur has become the answer to that question currently. Umran Malik has fallen behind in that list suddenly, although he might do well in the T20s and we start talking about him, but for now, it seems like Lord Thakur's World Cup looks almost confirmed."

Meanwhile, India were in pole position to win the match after posting 351 on the board in the decisive third ODI against the West Indies at the Brian Lara Stadium. Mukesh Kumar sent the top three batters back to the hut before Shardul picked up four wickets, giving away 37 runs in 6.3 overs. Kuldeep Yadav chipped in with a couple of wickets and Jaydev Unadkat, who was playing an ODI after almost a decade, also picked up a wicket as India dismissed the hosts for 151 to win the match by 200 runs and clinch the series 2-1.