‘Give us a fair chance’: Shardul Thakur Urges BCCI to Get Rid of ‘Entertainment Factors’ From the IPL to Bring Balance Back

Star India pacer Shardul Thakur has made a stunning comeback after joining the Lucknow Super Giants (LSG) squad. He went unsold with a base price of INR two crore in the Indian Premier League (IPL) 2025 auction before replacing the injured Mohsin Khan.

In just two games, the 33-year-old has proved to be an important inclusion to Rishabh Pant’s team. He has bagged six wickets at an economy of 8.83. He scalped two wickets in as many overs against the Delhi Capitals (DC), followed by a four-wicket haul against the Sunrisers Hyderabad (SRH). His heroics against the SRH included the dismissals of Abhishek Sharma and Ishan Kishan.

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Shardul Thakur Demands Fair Chance

According to an ESPN Cricinfo report, the pacer has criticised the overuse of flat wickets in the IPL to favour the batters more. He spoke on behalf of all the bowlers who could not have the opportunity to share their opinions about the pitches. He urged the BCCI to create such pitches where both the batters and bowlers get equal chances. It should not be one-sided towards the batters, he opined.

“It is not what I want, but it is what the bowlers want. A lot of them might not be outspoken or they might not get a chance to speak in front of media or give interviews about the pitch conditions. All that the bowlers are asking is to prepare the pitch in such a manner that the game hangs in balance and it should not be just one-sided where batters are coming and smashing us, because all we want is a fair chance and fair opportunity in the game”, said Thakur.

Furthermore, the pacer hailed the “Impact Player Rule” as an “entertainment factor” of the game. He stressed that the high-scoring matches are not only happening due to this new rule addition in the IPL, but also for preparing such wickets which favour the batters unfairly. As a bowler, he demanded to have a fair chance in the game to scalp wickets for their respective team.

“The Impact Player rule is an entertainment factor and games change a lot, but that these 250 scores are being made is not only because of this rule change, but also because of the way the pitches are being made. We are just saying as a bowling unit that give us a fair and square chance where we can get a batsman out”, he stated.

LSG will take on the Punjab Kings in their first home fixture on April 1.

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