Shardul Thakur has played two One Day Internationals for India in Sri Lanka before being dropped from the squad for the upcoming series against Australia.
However, the 25-year old Maharastra bowler was named in the squad for the game against New Zealand A team. But former Mumbai Ranji Trophy team coach Chandrakant Pandit feels Shardul would be more of a squad rotation policy.
“Shardul has the ability to prove himself at the top level. His future is bright. There is tough competition for fast bowlers in the Indian team and Shardul needs to be mentally fit to overcome such situations. He should work hard and grab the opportunity with both hands whenever he gets a chance,” Pandit, a former India stumper told mid-day yesterday.
Shardul is considered as one of the pace bowlers with a lot of potential for the future. He did not harm his reputation in ODIs against Sri Lanka as he emerged with figures 1/26 and 0/42 in his first two games.
“Shardul needs to raise the bar with his bowling and should keep himself fit to compete against other India pacers. While playing at the international level, he should be more disciplined in his bowling. He is an outstanding fielder and can bat well. He should concentrate on batting too. We have very few all-rounders and Shardul has the ability to be a good all-rounder,” Pandit added.
However, Thakur is far from a finished product with him still being behind the likes of Bhuvneswar Kumar, Jasprit Bumrah, Mohammed Shami and Umesh Yadav.
Asked what the biggest strength of Shardul Thakur is, Pandit said:
“He has good pace and movement. He is a wicket-taking bowler and because of his aggression, he tries out different things. As he will play more matches at the highest level, he will learn how to plan to get different batsmen out, but right now, it is very important to give him confidence and groom him for the future,” said Pandit.