Shardul Thakur produced a strong performance in LSG’s match against SRH, returning with figures of 4/34 in four overs.
From being left without a buyer at the IPL 2025 auction to leading the wicket-taking charts in the league after LSG’s second match, Shardul Thakur’s start in the season has been nothing short of sensational. The Lucknow Super Giants pacer, brought in as an emergency replacement after injuries to key bowlers, has now emerged as their leader in pace attack, producing a four-wicket haul to dismantle Sunrisers Hyderabad on Thursday.
Shardul Thakur with the Purple Cap(IPL)
Thakur struck twice in two balls in just his second over, removing the dangerous Abhishek Sharma and last-match centurion Ishan Kishan. First, a short ball hurried Abhishek into a mistimed pull, comfortably pouched at deep square. Then, Ishan feathered a harmless delivery down the leg side to the keeper, departing for a golden duck.
While Travis Head (47 off 28) threatened to take the game away with a blistering assault, Shardul’s early breakthroughs ensured SRH never got full control. He returned later to dismiss big-hitters in the death overs, finishing with figures of 4/34. His stellar show saw him don the coveted Purple Cap.
Shardul donned the Purple Cap during the mid-innings interview, and spoke about being unsold in the auction. The pacer stated that while it was a ‘bad day’ for him when didn’t find a buyer, he didn’t think twice when LSG came calling.
“In IPL, all these things keep happening. Unfortunately, (there were) a few injuries here and there, and there were a few inquiries if I could join the camp. But LSG approached me first so I had to accept it. Zaheer Khan gave me a call. You have good and bad days, you have to go through it in cricket,” Shardul said.
While social media buzzed with disbelief at how franchises overlooked him initially, Thakur let his bowling do the talking.
“Winning in the game is important for me. I don’t look at the wickets or runs column. I want to create an impact and a match-winning performance. The batters are coming hard at the bowlers, why not the bowlers go hard at them, that was our plan against SRH. They have been scoring heavily on flat pitches. It fell in our pockets initially (earlier today),” Shardul further said.
SRH score 190/9
Invited to bat first, the Sunrisers were hit by the double blow early in their innings, but the batters ensured the early strikes didn’t hamper their run rate. Even as wickets continued to fall in regular intervals for the Sunrisers, the side managed to post a strong 190/9 on the board.
SRH have gained a reputation for their explosive hitting since last year’s IPL, consistently breaching the 200+ run-mark while batting first. In their opening match of the 2025 edition, Sunrisers came close to breaking their own record for the highest total in an innings, scoring 286/6 against Rajasthan Royals.
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