Shardul Thakur hopeful of adapting better in South Africa

The Indian team has tasted the wooden spoon in the Test series against South Africa. Though the men in blue put up a fight here and there, they were no match for the mighty Proteas. Barring the bowling department, the Indian batsmen and fielders were way behind their counterparts. It is highly unlikely that this trend will change in the third Test.

Mixed-Bag

It is very hard for the bowlers to make into the Indian setup. Players like Bhuvneshwar Kumar, Jasprit Bumrah and Mohammed Shami have done exceedingly well in the past couple of years. However, Shardul Thakur has managed to break into the 15-man squad quite a few number of times but has got limited opportunities in the playing XI. He is also named in the ODI squad that will play a total of six matches against the Proteas.

Just when Thakur was trying to find and regain his rhythm in the Syed Mushtaq Ali Trophy, he has been called up as a backup bowler in South Africa for the third Test. The young man has lacked game time since his debut. After recovering from an ankle injury in 2017, Thakur has become a player who finds himself in between the domestic arena and the Indian team. He earns a spot in the Indian squad and fails to make it to the XI which prevents him from taking part in the domestic matches as well.

“Mentally it was quite challenging because you are not sure about your place. Sometimes you are in the team but you don’t know whether you are playing a game for India. Sometimes you are on the verge of playing for India but you’re not getting a game. Then again going back to domestic cricket,” Thakur said to Sportstar. It was a difficult year for Thakur as he was in and out of the team and a few injuries affected his rhythm too.

Though Thakur has joined the Indian team at a time when it is not in the right frame of mind, he is full of positives and looking to exploit the pace-friendly conditions. “If you see, the home team will always have an advantage, no matter what. They have played in those conditions, they are aware of the pitch. The challenge for us is to adapt and express us to the fullest. Skill-wise I think everyone has hell lot of skills. But at the end of the day, it’s about how confident you go out there and execute your skills in a match. I hope we can deliver consistently.” He added.

The team is 2-0 behind in this series and must look for some positives in the third Test so as to gain some confidence heading into the ODI series.