Brisbane: When Shardul Thakur stepped out to bat Sunday, rescuing India from a precarious 186/6 was not the only target on his mind. Shardul Thakur was also keen to impress the Australian crowd after being told how ‘rewarding’ it would feel by coach Ravi Shastri. India were virtually down and out when Thakur (67) joined debutant Washington Sundar. (62). They put on 123 runs for the seventh wicket to take India past the 300-run mark. It meant that Australia’s lead was limited to just 33 runs.
“When I walked in, the situation was difficult I would not deny that. The crowd was cheering for Australians bowlers. But I remembered our coach Ravi Shastri’s prophecy. He said at the start of the ODI series that ‘if you perform in this country, you will be rewarded’. This inspired me to play well and I batted to the best of my abilities,” said Thakur. “People will love you for your performances. That one thing was also on my mind that people are going love me,” added Thakur.
Batting at number eight, Thakur impressed with his stroke-play, his drives coming straight out of coaching manuals. “Eventually at the end of the day it would help my team; that thought was the biggest positive,” Thakur informed.
Cheered, he definitely was by not just the crowd but also his teammates. They gave him a standing ovation on his way back to the dressing room. Thakur spoke about his love for batting and how he waited for such an opportunity.
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“I have some batting talent. Whenever the throw-down specialists with the team are available, I practice. These are the moments you train and wait for and you could so something for the team. The idea was to spend time in the middle, it would add runs and the deficit will also decrease,” Thakur pointed out.
The Mumbaikar also admitted that travelling with the A team in this part of the world has helped him improve his skills.
“The ‘A’ tours are meant for second line up. It has helped a lot. We were here in 2016. When you play that (A team tour), the transition from India ‘A’ to India is not difficult. It’s how you execute your plans,” Thakur said.
Thakur said the key during his partnership with Sundar was clear communication.
“I have not batted with him much. I did so once in a T20 match and once in a practice game. Both of us have the temperament to succeed at this level. Honestly we were not looking at the scoreboard. The idea was to spend some time,” Thakur said.
“We knew their bowlers were tiring out a bit so it was matter of hanging in there for one hour. We knew probably we will be on top, if we hang in. We were communicating really well with each other. “When one was playing rash shot, the other was telling to do the basics,” he signed off.