After losing his place in the India Test squad and then suffering an injury setback, Shardul Thakur is all set to push for a spot once again. With the Border Gavaskar Trophy two months away, Shardul Thakur will return to competitive cricket in the Irani Cup for Mumbai team.
The seam-bowling all-rounder last played in the IPL 2024. In June, he underwent an ankle surgery. He recently made a return to cricket as he warmed up with 2/84 in Karnataka’s Capt (Dr) K Thimmappiah Memorial Tournament. While he did look rusty, Shardul will play the Mumbai vs Rest of India Irani Cup match starting Oct 1 to get back into the rhythm.
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Shardul Thakur was dropped from the India squad after his poor returns in the South Africa series. The Mumbai seamer bagged just a wicket for 101 runs. He did not have good returns with the bat either.
While it seemed Team India moved on from the 33-year-old, with India set to play 14 Test matches till August 2025, Shardul could feature prominently in Gautam Gambhir’s plans.
Despite losing form, Shardul continued to push for an India return through domestic cricket. In five Ranaji Trophy matches last season, Thakur bagged 16 wickets at an average of 20.12. He also scored 255 runs in eight innings, slamming a century and a fifty.
With Mohammed Shami still injured and Jasprit Bumrah needing workload management, Gambhir could recall Shardul for the Border Gavaskar Trophy. He was one of the stars who powered India to retain the trophy in 2020-21.
His maiden half-century in Gabba and then three fifties in England gave India the batting depth in the lower order. Hence, Team India would be eager to see Shardul Thakur return to form and fight for a Test spot once again. However, after missing the Bangladesh series, he is likely to be out of the New Zealand series as well.
