He's asking Virat Kohli & Co. to pick him for T20 WC: Aakash Chopra on Shardul Thakur's fiery 57 in 4th Test

Shardul Thakur hogged maximum limelight for Team India on Day 1 of the fourth Test versus England, at Kennington Oval, London. After being asked to bat first, Virat Kohli & Co. were down and out at 120-7 before Shardul rose to the occasion with the bat and his fiery 57 propelled India to 191. While the score remains a paltry one, the visitors almost reached the 200-run mark riding on Shardul's counterattack.

Shardul's 57 was laced with 7 fours and as many as 3 sixes, at a whopping strike-rate of 158.33. At stumps on Day 1, England are on the back foot being 53-3 after Jasprit Bumrah's twin strikes and Umesh Yadav getting rid of Joe Root.

Following Shardul's fireworks, former Indian opener-turned-commentator Aakash Chopra opined on his performances and how he has always contributed in some way for Team India in the recent past. Chopra feels the Chennai Super Kings (CSK) all-rounder is fighting hard for the all-rounder's slot for the upcoming ICC T20 World Cup.

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On his Youtube channel, Chopra said, "He is not just scoring runs. He is asking you to pick him for the World T20 because he is bringing you that option. You obviously miss Hardik Pandya but if he is not there, Shardul Thakur is presenting himself as an option. Hardik might be a better batsman than him, no doubt, but he is a better bowler than Hardik. So he is saying that if you are searching for a package, he could be the guy."

He further stated, "When Rishabh Pant got out, I thought we are gone. But after that Shardul comes and shines. He did a fantastic job. Lord Shardul, again and again - Brisbane, he scored the runs. He was actually net bowler in that series but played the match, scored the runs and took wickets as well. Then in Nottingham, he got Root out in the first innings and Buttler in the second innings. He gives you the important wickets. Here you were 127/7 and he gave you a half-century in which he smashes the England bowlers quite a bit. You reach 191, it is just down to Shardul Thakur once again."

It will be interesting to see if Shardul gets picked in India's squad for the T20 World Cup, will be commence from October 19. For now, the all-rounder will like to continue in a similar stead and lead India to an unassailable 2-1 lead in the five-match Test series in the United Kingdom.