3 reasons why Shardul Thakur's century vs Tamil Nadu in Ranji Trophy 2024 semi-finals is a great sign for India 

Shardul Thakur scored a brilliant century in the first innings of Mumbai's Ranji Trophy semi-final clash against Tamil Nadu at the Sharad Pawar Cricket Academy BKC in Mumbai.

Thakur produced an excellent 109-run knock, which included 13 boundaries and four sixes, which came off just 104 balls. It was an exhilarating and enthralling knock by the out-of-favor India all-rounder.

His innings played a big role in the domestic giants beating their southern counterparts by an innings and 70 runs, thereby qualifying for the final. In this article, we bring to you three reasons why Shardul Thakur's century against Tamil Nadu is a great sign for India.

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#1 It boosts their all-rounder reserves

Given that India have a perennial scarcity in their all-rounder reserves, especially after Hardik Pandya chose not to play Test cricket, this will give the selectors a big boost.

This just goes to show that Shardul Thakur is not a one-trick pony, and can be trusted to wield the willow as well. He has already made his name as a decent lower-order batter for India in Test cricket, and this knock just goes on to reinforce the notion that he has not lost that skill, and can still be trusted.

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#2 Shardul Thakur's century provides them with a backup for Hardik Pandya

India's hopes of winning the ODI World Cup in 2023 were largely dependent on Hardik Pandya's form and fitness. Once the all-rounder got ruled out of the tournament after getting hit on the ankle on his follow-through against England in Ahmedabad, India's team combination received a massive jolt.

With Shardul Thakur establishing himself as a more than decent bowling all-rounder, the selectors can start looking beyond Pandya and grooming the former for his role. This can be either red-ball or white-ball cricket. In red-ball cricket, India have no fast-bowling all-rounders at the moment.

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#3 It is encouraging with the T20 World Cup coming up

Given that the T20 World Cup is slated to be played later this year, Shardul Thakur's confidence with the bat in hand will augur well for India's hopes as well.

Although he is not a part of India's plans for the marquee event as of yet, this knock might just tilt the selectors' attention towards him.

Thakur, although he plays along the ground on most occasions, can also be trusted to hit the ball in the air and a long way if he is instructed to do so. This knock against Tamil Nadu in the semi-final of the Ranji Trophy will give a huge fillip to his confidence with the bat in hand.