IND vs SA 2022-23, Ranchi ODI: 'It's okay I'm not selected for ICC T20 World Cup' - Shardul Thakur

Indian all-rounder Shardul Thakur has come to terms with the "big setback" of missing the 2022 ICC T20 World Cup cut, but the Mumbai medium-pace all-rounder is concentrated on doing good in the upcoming matches, as he still has a "lot of cricket" left in him. Thakur played the Twenty20 International (T20I) format for India when fellow all-rounder Hardik Pandya was doing his prolonged and sincere rehabilitation program. Still, his poor economy rate of 9.15 has pushed him out of the national team's radar.

"Of course, it's a big setback. Every player dreams of playing in the World Cup, not just playing but winning it as well. It's okay; I'm not selected this time. But there's still a lot of cricket left, and the ODI World Cup is next year. My focus will be to do well in whatever matches I play and make winning contributions," Thakur said ahead of the second ODI at the JSCA International Stadium Complex in Ranchi against South Africa on Sunday.

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India suffered another big blow to its T20WC drive when injury-prone pacer Deepak Chahar, who was in the reserves, was ruled out of the ongoing series, with his prospects of going to Australia far away. "Injuries are part and parcel of the game. At some point, someone is going to get injured. We should not take it by heart, honestly. There is a lot more cricket to come," he stated.

Asked if he fancies his luck, Thakur expressed: "If injuries happen, then anyone can come at any point in time. As of now, your responsibility is to be ready whenever and wherever you're asked to play. I will be mentally ready if I'm given a call-up. That's all in my hands."

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Want to make a difference with bat lower down
Thakur further communicated that he is sharpening his batting skills to make a difference lower the order, which was displayed in a 66-ball-93-run stand with Sanju Samson in the opening ODI. Chasing a stiff 250 in 40 overs, India was 51/4, but Sanju Samson (86*) and Thakur (33) revived their hopes only to miss out by nine runs.

"If you see teams who have done very well at the international level, their batting line-up has been quite profound. For instance, Australia has the likes of Pat Cummins and Mitchell Starc coming at 8 or 9. Even for that matter, England. I've been focusing on my batting for quite a long time now. If they can contribute, it's always great, batting at seven or the one coming at nine. That gives you a cushion."

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"We also can have our batting line-up deep and make the difference -- the difference of 15-20 runs that can be crucial in winning the match, especially in white ball cricket," Thakur articulated.

Unfair to criticise only Indian bowlers
Team India's bowling may have copped complaints of late, but Thakur feels it's unfair as the rival bowlers are also leaking runs. "It's not fair to criticise only the Indians. Even their bowlers are taken to the cleaners. We won the T20I series, but they also were slammed," he reckoned.

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"I think before questioning the consistency, we should see how the wicket was, the conditions. Sometimes in an ODI match, more than 350-runs are scored, so in that case, every bowler got hit. There has been no one-sided match for India, whether on a batting or a bowling-friendly pitch. Most have been competitive. We have won most matches and showed consistency," concluded Thakur.

(With inputs from PTI)