India lost the first Test of the series by five wickets in Leeds
Voicing their opinions over a YouTube channel seems to be the next coolest thing for cricketers. After Ravichandran Ashwin, Aakash Chopra, and a lot more, Ajinkya Rahane is the latest addition to the list of cricketers to have a YouTube channel of their own. India’s former Test skipper took to social media to express his opinions after India’s disappointing loss to England in the first Test of the ENG vs IND series at Leeds.
In his video, he mentioned that Shardul Thakur would be a great option to open the bowling. He can swing the ball both ways and can pick wickets when the team needs them. India opened the bowling with Jasprit Bumrah and Mohammed Siraj in both innings of the match. However, the Mumbai cricketer feels that Thakur can have a greater impact if he is brought on to bowl first up.
“Whatever I have seen from Shardul Thakur, he can swing the ball both ways and is a wicket-taker. If he can bowl as a first-change bowler or even if the captain can give him the new ball, you never know. The thing about the Duke’s ball is, it generally starts to do things after the first 10-12 overs. So if Shardul [Thakur] can take the new ball, it would be great. I would love to see him bowl more overs. The captain needs to give him the freedom, and he will give you wickets. I think his [Shardul Thakur’s] role in the upcoming games will be very crucial for the Indian team”, said Rahane.
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The all-rounder from Mumbai has played a total of 12 Tests in his brief career. Five of those games have come on English soil. He has managed to pick up 12 wickets in 10 innings in England. Thakur has proved that he is no mug with the bat as well. He has scored 178 runs in five Tests in England at a healthy strike rate of 62.23. His highest score on English soil is 60, and India will hope that he brings up his best game.
The Indian all-rounder didn’t perform to the best of his capabilities in the first Test in Leeds. In the first innings, he could only score a solitary run, failing to contribute towards the score after the top order had laid a solid platform. He bowled just six overs in the first innings and went for 38 runs, without a wicket. The second innings was no different. He got out for a mere total of four runs as the team stumbled at 364. He was able to bag a couple of wickets in the same over in the second innings, but by the time he could create further impact, it was too late.
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