WTC Final: Why Sanjay Manjrekar wants Shardul Thakur to play as third seamer

Cricketer-turned pundit Sanjay Manjrekar wants India to pick Shardul Thakur as the third seamer in the World Test Championship (WTC) Final. Manjrekar feels that Shardul Thakur is a 'proper swing bowler' and will be more equipped than Ishant Sharma and Mohammed Siraj in English conditions.

The WTC final is set to be played at the Rose Bowl in Southampton on June 18-22. This is the first time in months that the trio of Jasprit Bumrah, Mohammed Shami and Ishant Sharma - a combination which was immensely successful the last time India toured the UK - will be available to Virat Kohli.

However, Sanjay Manjrekar said New Zealand has an edge over India in terms of swing bowlers and Shardul Thakur could placate that issue.

"When India play New Zealand in the first half of the English summer in the World Test Championship final, I would prefer Shardul Thakur -- being a swing bowler -- to be the third seamer behind Jasprit Bumrah and Mohammed Shami," Manjrekar told ESPNcricinfo.

"Let me elaborate: when India were in New Zealand, one of the things that India missed was a proper swing bowler. I know Indians didn't bat well but one of the reasons why New Zealand won was because they had proper swing bowlers who could exploit the conditions in New Zealand. Now the first half of the English summer, the sun doesn't come out as much. So the condition will be similar to what we had in New Zealand," he added.

Nooooo it was tongue in cheek to needle my two lovely colleagues 😁Serious note - Siraj for me if India play 3 seamers. India missed a proper swing bowler badly in NZ. MUTE ME: Should Shardul Thakur start for India in the Tests in England? https://t.co/2uA48IhWsG

— Sanjay Manjrekar (@sanjaymanjrekar) May 13, 2021

In addition to the aforementioned pacers, India also have Umesh Yadav as a pacer alongside Prasidh Krishna, Avesh Khan and Arzan Nagwaswalla as reserves.

"Shardul Thakur has proved he can be an all-rounder" - Bharat Arun

Shardul Thakur in action with the bat

Along with his bowling, Shardul Thakur has also time and again shown his prowess with the bat. Team India bowling coach Bharat Arun acknowledged the same in a recent interview when he called Thakur an 'all-rounder', pointing to his fantastic contributions in Australia.

"It is more of a selectors' job to find them and then we can develop those all-rounders. Shardul Thakur has proved he can be an all-rounder. What he did in Australia was fabulous," Arun said.

After the WTC Final, India will also vie against Joe Root and co. in a 5-Test series starting from August 4.

India's squad: Virat Kohli (C), Ajinkya Rahane (VC), Rohit Sharma, Gill, Mayank, Cheteshwar Pujara, H. Vihari, Rishabh (WK), R. Ashwin, R. Jadeja, Axar Patel, Washington Sundar, Bumrah, Ishant, Shami, Siraj, Shardul, Umesh. KL Rahul & Saha (WK) subject to fitness clearance.

— BCCI (@BCCI) May 7, 2021