Star all-rounder Shardul Thakur produced a match-winning performance with the ball for Lucknow Super Giants against in the 7th match of the IPL 2025 against Sunrisers Hyderabad at the Rajiv Gandhi International Stadium in Hyderabad.
The 33-year-old Thakur won the Player of the Match award after his figures of 4 for 34 helped restrict SRH to 190/9. In reply, Nicholas Pooran’s quickfire 70 helped LSG chase down the target in 16.1 overs.
After his heroics with the ball against SRH, Thakur called for fair pitches in IPL 2025 to provide balance between bat and ball.
“I feel bowlers get very little on this kind of pitches. Even in the last game pre-match, I said that pitches should be prepared in such a way that the game hangs in the balance for batters and bowlers,” Shardul said at the post-match presentation,” Shardul said at the post-match presentation.
“Especially after the impact player rule, it’s not fair on the bowlers if a team scores 240-250 runs,” he added.
During his match-winning bowling spell, Shardul took the wickets of Abhishek Sharma (6) and Ishan Kishan (0) in consecutive balls in his opening spell.
“Of course, some swing and what we have seen is that Travis Head and Abhishek like to take their chances, so let me take my chances as well,” he said.
Notably, Shardul went unsold at the IPL 2025 auction and he joined LSG only after Mohsin Khan was ruled out due to an injury. After the two games of the ongoing season, Thakur has become LSG’s lead pacer, and the Purple Cap holder in the IPL 2025.
“I had made my plans. I had signed for County Cricket if I wasn’t picked for IPL. While playing Ranji, I got a call from Zaheer Khan that we are looking at you as a potential replacement, so don’t switch yourself off. If we get you, we’ll need you to start. That was the day I got back in the IPL zone. Ups and downs keep happening. That was a bad day when I wasn’t picked in the auction,” he said.
Sunrisers Hyderabad will now lock horns with Delhi Capitals (DC) in Vizag on March 30 (Sunday), while LSG will face Punjab Kings (PBKS) on April 1 (Tuesday).
