Shardul Thakur says he was underutilised on England tour

Indian cricketer Shardul Thakur has expressed his belief that he was underutilized during India's tour of England last year and stated his strong desire to return to the national team. The 34-year-old all-rounder made these comments to reporters on Wednesday at an event launching the Mumbai Cricket Association's 2026-27 season.

Thakur played in two of the five Tests during the drawn series in England, featuring in the matches at Leeds and Manchester. He scored 46 runs across three innings, including a 41-run contribution in Manchester, and took two wickets while bowling 27 overs in total. Reflecting on his role, Thakur said he felt he was not used properly, particularly with the ball, and that tactical errors were made in his deployment.

"In batting, yes, it was my mistake that I played a loose shot in Leeds. But in Manchester, I batted beautifully," Thakur said. He described surviving a challenging spell against the new ball on an overcast day, which helped India post a strong first-innings total in the drawn fourth Test. "I would say it was more about being underbowled and being used in the wrong phases. There were some calculation errors, I would say."