Shardul Thakur: Have to perform by hook or by crook

Shardul hit his second Test half-century off 31 balls and beat Ian Botham’s 35-year-old record as he helped India’s total attain a semblance of respectability

Shardul Thakur, who on Thursday pipped Ian Botham’s record by hitting the fastest Test fifty on English soil, feels that when one is entrusted with responsibility, he has to “perform by hook or by crook.” Shardul hit his second Test half-century off 31 balls and beat Ian Botham’s 35-year-old record as he helped India’s total attain a semblance of respectability.

 “You have to take responsibility whether you are a pacer or a batter. Whenever you get a chance, you have to shoulder responsibility by hook or by crook,” Shardul said after day’s play when asked if the assignment of scoring runs every time adds to the pressure.

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“For me, it was a challenge and whenever I get to bat, I have to create such an impact that it opens the door for my team’s victory,” the Mumbai all-rounder said having already hit a fifty in India’s victory in Brisbane earlier this year. In the Indian dressing room, he is referred to as ‘Beefy’ which is legendary Ian Botham’s famous nickname. “Pretty happy getting so much love from teammates that they want to call me by a certain nickname,” he smiled.

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