India pacer Shardul Thakur has shared his success mantra behind his maiden Test fifer. On the second day of the second Test at Johannesburg, the Mumbai all-rounder bowled a record-breaking spell to keep India alive in the game.
On the second day, the hosts could manage to take a lead of only 27 runs but India wiped it out quickly by the end of the day as the visitors finished the day with a score of 85/2 and they are leading by 58 runs. Though, the highlight of the day was Shardul Thakur whose spell of 7/61 broke many records.
At the end of the day, Thakur revealed that he spotted a crack on a good length which he tried to hit that mark consistently and got the desired results.
“When I started bowling, there was a length somewhere in those 22-yards from where the ball was kicking in (off) and also was staying low a bit. So all I did was to try to hit that spot and hit that crack,” Thakur said.
See both the venues, even when we played in Centurion and here in Joburg (Johannesburg) at the Wanderers, there is and there was some help in the pitch, so all you had to do is keep coming hard at the batsman and bowl in the right spots, I was trying to do the same,” he added.
“The current match situation is tricky for India”- Shardul Thakur
However, the 30-year old admitted that India is still in a tricky position. He believes if India can stretch this game longer to day-4 and 5, it will be easier for the game as the pitch will get difficult to bat on the last two days here.
“The current match situation, if you see it’s tricky. The lead that we take from here and the bigger the target we set is good because as the game progresses and we all know that last two days, it is not that easy to bat on the pitch. So, from our team’s point of view, the bigger target we set, and take the game long, that is good, because there is a lot of time left in the game.” he added.
This 7/61 is his best figure in all first-class cricket, bettering his previous record of 6/31. However, the right arm seamer believes that his best is yet to come.
Shardul also recalled his earlier days and he gave huge credit to his childhood coach Dinesh Lad who had a big influence on his career.
“Yes, obviously he (Dinesh Lad) had a lot of impact in my cricketing career and he is a second parent to me. He spotted me when no one else did and he provided that exposure, offering me an admission in the school in Borivali and since then my life has changed,” he added.
Before this test, the all-rounder picked 16 wickets in 5 tests and also scored 204 runs with 3 fifties.