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Cricket Players‘They’ll punish us if we don’t bowl well’: Shardul Thakur explains the importance of ‘variations in white-ball cricket’
Pacers Shardul Thakur and Bhuvneshwar Kumar were the top performers with the ball who shared 7 wickets among them to restrict England to 322 for 9 in 50 overs.
Team India on Sunday registered a stunning 7-run victory against England in the third ODI in Pune, to clinch the 3-match series 2-1. The Indian bowlers were put under pressure by opponent all-rounder Sam Curran who slammed an unbeaten 95 off 83 balls. But the hosts held their nerve and defended the 329-run total in the final over.
Pacers Shardul Thakur and Bhuvneshwar Kumar were the top performers with the ball who shared 7 wickets among them to restrict England to 322 for 9 in 50 overs. Thakur was the top wicket-taker, with 4 scalps to his credit, while Bhuvneshwar registered the figures of 3/43 in 10 overs.
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After defeating the Eoin Morgan-led side, both the pacers got together for a candid conversation and spoke how they executed their gameplan against England batsmen.
“When I came to bowl 3 wickets had already gone, Dawid Malan and Jos Buttler seemed like they were in good form. I tried to take their wickets because they bat very deep. It is essential to bring in the variations in white-ball cricket. I try to bring in the cutters, slower-ball bouncers, etc to outfox the batsmen.
“We knew the batting lineup is strong and they will punish us if we don't bowl well. Especially with this team,” Shardul told Bhuvneshwar.
Meanwhile, Bhuvneshwar reflected on the value of experience he gained over the period of time and explained how he developed his knack for bowling.
“It’s all about the experience. You keep on playing and learn from your seniors. But one thing that I’ve learned is you change the field to disturb the batsman. I try to learn from other bowlers as well and keep applying these small things [like variations in bowling] during a game.
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Earlier, Bhuvneshwar spoke about making a comeback in the longest format of the game. He said that he will do everything to get prepared for Test cricket.
“Of course, red-ball cricket is on my radar. I will prepare to keep the red ball in mind. Although what kind of team will be selected for Test matches is an entirely different scenario.
"My workload management and training during IPL will be keeping the red ball in mind because I know there's a lot of Tests ahead and my priority still is Test cricket. So, from my end, I will do everything to get ready for the Test series,” said Bhuvneshwar.
