World Test Championship Final: "It will be a plus point for India to let Shardul Thakur fill that all-rounder's role"

All-rounder Shardul Thakur should be in India’s playing XI for both the World Test Championship (WTC) final against New Zealand starting next month as per WTC final schedule and the ensuing five-Test series against England, according to his childhood coach Dinesh Lad.

India team for WTC final have been left crippled as Hardik Pandya’s shoulder injury still restricts him from bowling. As a result, the 28-year-old premier all-rounder has been left out of the 24-member contingent traveling to the UK next month. Lad feels Shardul Thakur can perfectly deputize for Hardik.

“As a coach, I would want Shardul to be given preference in the WTC final based on how he has been performing of late. He can swing both the ball and bat, and it will be a plus point for India to let Shardul fill that all-rounder’s role. But again, everything depends on the team management and coaches,” Dinesh Lad said in an exclusive interview with Sportskeeda.

The key to a successful team is having all-rounders to bridge the gap between the top order and the bowling line-up. And while playing in SENA countries, it becomes imperative to have a fast bowling all-rounder in the ranks.

Notably, there is a paucity of that breed in Indian cricket at the moment. Dinesh Lad feels Shardul Thakur can be groomed to don that role in the years to come, but only if he gets ample matches under his belt starting with the forthcoming tour.

“He will definitely get preference in the long run because India are currently lacking in all-rounders. Hardik Pandya was playing as an all-rounder but now he is not able to bowl because of injury. Teams need fast-bowling all-rounders and there is only Shardul Thakur in the queue. But in order to perform well, he needs to get a long run of matches,” Dinesh Lad explained.

For the record, Shardul Thakur has the experience of playing in English conditions. Though he didn’t feature in the four-Test series in 2018, he played the tour game against Essex and the third ODI, picking up one wicket in each of the games.

Also read: Rohit Sharma, Shardul Thakur, and the man who gifted Indian cricket these two gems

"I have always told Shardul Thakur to make the batsman play" - Dinesh Lad

Shardul Thakur dismissed the Australian captain in both the innings in Brisbane

Shardul Thakur is no longer a fringe player. In the last two T20I series versus India’s next two opponents – New Zealand and England – the 29-year-old emerged as the leading wicket-taker with eight wickets each in the five-match assignments.

However, Shardul Thakur will be up against completely different conditions and balls. Controlling the red Dukes cherry is a challenge in itself, but Dinesh Lad simply wants him to bowl in the right areas and make the batters play without bothering about lateral movement.

Also check the latest WTC Final live score here.

“They have some 10-12 days window before the first match, so he will get ample time to practice and get used to the conditions. And he recently played against England, so I don’t think he will have any problem. I have just one funda, I have always told him to make the batsman play without thinking about movement, because the batter will make a mistake but in order to make that happen, he needs to be enticed to play.

“He has the ability and hence reached that level, so he just needs to hold a particular line and length to get wickets. He has also learnt to handle pressure, like how we saw him bat in pressure situation and help India win in Brisbane,” Dinesh Lad, who nurtured Shardul Thakur ever since the ‘Palghar Express’ was 14 years old, told Sportskeeda.

While Rishabh Pant was the Man of the Match for his counter-attacking 87* in the second innings, Shardul Thakur’s all-round abilities came to the fore as he scored 69 runs (67 & 2) and bagged seven wickets (3/94 & 4/61) to help India script the historic Gabba win earlier this year.

Lad also revealed that he held two batting sessions after Shardul returned, during which they specifically worked on his patience and playing shots along the turf.

“He did a few batting sessions with me during the off season. Like Rohit, Shardul is also a naturally attacking player. But he has worked on his patience and now started playing shots along the ground as well,” Dinesh Lad, who has been coaching at the Swami Vivekananda International School in Mumbai for the past 25 years, concluded.

It is believed that India will go into the match against NZ Squad for WTC final with a three-pronged pace attack comprising of Jasprit Bumrah, Mohammed Shami and Ishant Sharma, apart from the spin duo of Ravichandran Ashwin and Ravindra Jadeja. While the pace triumvirate is unlikely to be tinkered with, Shardul Thakur has an outside chance to replace Ashwin in the line-up.