IND vs SA: Eric Simons Praises "Less Illustrious" Shardul Thakur For His Exploits On Day 2 Of Second Test

Former Indian bowling consultant Eric Simons has praised Shardul Thakur for his maiden Test fifer. He took 7/61 in the second Test in Johannesburg as South Africa were bowled out for 229. Simmons said that Thakur is the “less illustrious among the bowling group” but takes the responsibility of making things happen.

India opted to go in with four pacers with Mohammed Siraj injuring his hamstring and going off the ground. This came as a huge bow to India early in the day. The onus was then on the other three pacers to get the job done and Shardul shouldered the responsibility well.

Impressed by his performance, Eric Simons said that Shardul’s body language and willingness to shoulder the responsibilities is what makes him a successful bowler.

“He is the less illustrious of the quartet. As a person I’ve spoken a lot about in terms of his own self-confidence but also his willingness to accept responsibilities,” said Simons.

“I wondered what was going to happen today with Siraj being injured. He did bowl a few but not with the same venom. He (Thakur) didn’t bowl any better than the chaps upfront but he got the reward and this is the kind of personality we see in him,” he added.

Eric also looked back on Shardul’s performances in away Test matches for India in the year gone by. He had match-winning performances against Australia and England away from home.

He Bowed Well To Get Those Wickets: Eric Simons On Shardul Thakur

“Why he is part of the team, why is he such a popular member, whether it is with his bat, he’s won you in Australia and England. Coming in at tough situations, he got the wicket but he actually bowled really well to get those wickets, understood the surface. Bit short initially but got fuller and found the edges. So this is the personality is exactly what I expected, take responsibility when your team needed you the most,” the comments by Simons came during the Lunch break show on SuperSport.

Dean Elgar, Keegan Petersen and Temba Bavuma were three Of Shardul’s seven wickets on day 2.

Also Read: IND vs SA: Shardul Thakur’s 7-Wicket Haul On Day 2 Breaks Several Records