India will head into the second Test under pressure after losing the opener to England at Headingley. While much of the focus has been on batting collapses and dropped catches, one name that’s been caught in the storm is Shardul Thakur.
The fast-bowling all-rounder struggled with both bat and ball, and questions have been raised about whether he deserves to keep his spot in the XI.
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But former India vice-captain Ajinkya Rahane doesn’t agree with the critics. In fact, he believes that Shardul was underused and that captain Shubman Gill should handle him differently.
Let’s see what Rahane had to say about the Shardul situation.
Why does Rahane think Shardul should bowl more?
Rahane spoke openly on his YouTube channel, suggesting that Shardul wasn’t given enough of a chance to show his full potential in the first Test. He felt the pacer was underutilized.
Rahane said that six overs in the first innings weren’t enough to judge his performance. He believes that if Gill trusts Shardul and allows him to operate in longer spells, the returns could be better.
“I feel an all-rounder’s role is very important. Shardul Thakur has been an experienced player and has done well in Test cricket overseas. I want to see more overs from Shardul. If the Indian team can use Shardul Thakur in a better way, that will be great," Rahane said on his YouTube channel.
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"Whatever I have seen with him, he can swing the ball both ways and is a wicket-taker. If Shardul can bowl the first change or even given the new ball he can swing it both ways,” he added.
He even suggested giving Shardul the new ball or using him as the first change, especially with the Duke ball behaving more after 10-12 overs.
“With the duke ball, it generally starts to behave after 10 or 12 overs. If Shardul can start the bowling with Bumrah and Siraj can come in as one change, that will be great. I would like to see Shardul bowling more overs. Give him that freedom, he will get you more wickets,” Rahane reasoned.