Mentor MS Dhoni Might Ask Ravi Shastri, Virat Kohli To Include Shardul Thakur In T20 World Cup Main Squad: Michael Vaughan

Former England skipper Michael Vaughan compared Indian bowling all-rounder, Shardul Thakur, to legendary English all-rounder, Sir Ian Botham. Vaughan also reckoned that MS Dhoni might ask Virat Kohli and Ravi Shastri to include Thakur in the 15-man squad for the T20 World Cup.

Thakur has been in fine form this year with both bat and ball. He has the knack of picking up wickets and breaking up partnerships at crucial intervals, as witnessed in the India-England T20I series earlier this year. He is also extremely handy with the bat lower down the order. Speaking about the 29-year-old, Vaughan said:

“Thakur is very similar to Ian Botham. He makes things happen with the ball in hand. He did it in the Test series. He’s doing it in the IPL. Shardul has the ability to make things happen. He’s got that deceptive pace. You watch him bow, you think he’s just doing it normally but he’s a very good deception.“

“He does something with the ball that deceives the batters” – Michael Vaughan

Vaughan continued by pointing out that Thakur has plenty of variations up his sleeve. Over the years, the Chennai Super Kings (CSK) all-rounder has developed a cunning knuckleball that has foxed many a batsman. In the T20s, this will always come in handy during clutch situations.

“He can surprise the batter and obviously the subtle variation that batsmen seem to find it difficult to pick. He’s certainly doing something with the ball that is deceiving the batters. The mentor of the Indian T20 team (MS Dhoni) is behind the stumps, he’s the captain of CSK and you probably think he’s gonna tell Virat and Shastri ‘you know come on’,” Vaughan further added in a Cricbuzz video.

Currently, Shardul Thakur isn’t part of India’s 15-man squad but will travel with the squad as a reserve. Considering his form, he might be promoted to the main squad. The 10th of October is the deadline for the final submission of the T20 World Cup squad.

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