Shardul Thakur’s father: Kohli and Dhoni's guidance boosted his confidence

Virat Kohli (R) celebrates the win with teammate Shardul Thakur at the end of the fifth and final T20I between India and England. Picture/ AFP

India pacer Shardul Thakur's father, Narendra, 73, has credited Team India captain Virat Kohli and IPL team Chennai Super Kings skipper MS Dhoni for boosting his son's confidence. Thakur, 29, emerged the highest wicket-taker with eight scalps in the recently concluded India v England T20I series, which the hosts won 3-2.

"The captain's support and guidance from the seniors in the team have played a very important role in boosting Shardul's confidence. He has benefited a lot from it. In the IPL, Dhoni mostly used him in the 17th or 19th over, while Kohli wants him to bowl in the last four overs. He has a very effective slower and knuckleball and he proved that he can bowl in the death overs," Thakur Sr told mid-day.com.

Thakur, who watched all the India v England T20I games on television right from the first ball, was worried when Shardul bowled two wides while defending 23 runs in the last over of the fourth T20I. Shardul returned with 3-42 in his four overs, which helped India win the game by eight runs in Ahmedabad last week.

"Nothing is impossible in the T20 game, but yes, I was concerned over whether Shardul would defend the total. But he bounced back strongly in the remaining deliveries, which was more important," remarked Thakur.

When asked how he felt when his son shouldered the responsibility perfectly in the absence of senior speedster Jasprit Bumrah and Mohammed Shami, Thakur said: "It was a very good and satisfying performance. Shardul did not take pressure but just wanted to play and win for the country. That could be one of the reasons he claimed the highest number of wickets for India in this series."

Shardul has 31 T20I wickets in 22 games, 15 ODI wickets in 12 matches and seven wickets in two Tests.

His batting has been effective too. Kohli promoted him in the batting order and he performed well, scoring quick runs at crucial times. I want him to emerge a top-class all-rounder. Whenever he got the opportunity to showcase his all-round skills, he grabbed them and performed well," remarked Thakur.