Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR) all-rounder Shardul Thakur dominated the news headlines with his power show in the Indian Premier League (IPL) 2023 match against Royal Challengers Bangalore on Thursday. Shardul’s blazing knock of 68 runs off 29 balls with the help of 9 fours and 3 sixes. While the fans in the stadium witnessed a special innings, even the Twitterverse bowed down to the all-rounder’s masterclass. On the occasion, Virender Sehwag held special praise for Shardul and Rinku, while calling both ‘Lord’. Shardul later responded to Sehwag’s tweet, suggesting it is from him that the players of today’s generation have learned the art of ‘clean hitting’.
“Lord Thakur … # Cleanhitting” tweeted Virender Sehwag. In a video shared by the Indian Premier League, KKR players Rahmanullah Gurbaz asked Shardul about his take on Sehwag’s tweet.
In reply, the India all-rounder said: “Paaji, aapsey hi seekhe tey clean hitting, we are just trying (Learnt from you, only).”
Of sparkling knocks, a special @virendersehwag tweet & relishing @iamsrk‘s presence
this interview special with @imShard & @RGurbaz_21 from Eden Gardens – By @28anand
Full Interview #TATAIPL | #KKRvRCB | @KKRidershttps://t.co/8bXwtvbTXB pic.twitter.com/xm7wmcWOZT
— IndianPremierLeague (@IPL) April 7, 2023
“No doubt it was a pressure situation but this is what we practice and train for. I am glad I could do it,” he added.
After the end of the match, Shardul himself admitted that he doesn’t quite know how he managed to pull off such a knock.
“I don’t even know where it came from but looking at the scorecard at that time, everyone would have thought we are struggling. But your subconscious mind takes over. You also have to have skills to do that at a higher level, but we also work hard in the nets. There is a period where we can slog it in the nets. The coaching staff do the throwdowns and give us the option of range-hitting. And you know the pitches – they always suit the batsmen, don’t they? Suyash bowled exceptionally well, and we know the quality Sunil and Varun have. They have fun, and take wickets. This was a perfect day,” he said.
After beating Royal Challengers Bangalore, Kolkata Knight Riders will square off against the defending champions Gujarat Titans at the Narendra Modi Stadium on Sunday.
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