‘Bhagwan bol rahe hai toh ho hi jayega’ – Fans react to Shardul Thakur’s ‘You can chase down 450 or even more’ statement

Shardul Thakur, an all-rounder for Team India, believes that his team is still in contention to win the World Test Championship (WTC) title. He said that even 450 can be chased down at this venue with one strong partnership, recalling England’s massive chase against them in the rescheduled Test at The Oval last year.

Despite a comeback by India on Day 3 of the Test on Friday, Australia maintained a firm grip on the WTC final. India started the day with a score of 151/5 in response to Australia’s 469 but lost KS Bharat for 5. The courageous seventh-wicket partnership of 109 between Ajinkya Rahane (89) and Thakur (51), though, lifted India.

India was ultimately bowled out for 296 in 69.4 overs. In their second innings, Australia reached their final score of 123/4, having amassed a 296-run advantage that may have decided the game. However, Thakur expressed his strong confidence in India’s chances during a news conference after Day 3’s conclusion.

The more we stay on the pitch, the more the team will benefit: Shardul Thakur

“Cricket is a funny game. You can never say what is the right total, especially in an major final. One good partnership and you can chase down 450 or maybe more than that. We saw last year England chased [nearly] 400 here and they did not lose too many wickets. So that’s a positive sign for us,” Thakur was quoted as saying in the press conference after end of play on Day Three.

“Whatever they [Australia] put up on the board, it’s too early to make any predictions. We see a lot of times in Test cricket that the game changes within an hour. So yes, we [would] like to be optimistic tomorrow [Saturday] going on the field. And yeah, we’ll take it on from there,” the 31-year-old right-arm seamer asserted.

On Day 3, when Bharat was first sent back to the pavilion, it seemed like India’s first innings will come to an end soon. But Rahane and Thakur, on the other hand, took repeated body blows while participating in a tough stand. “He [Rahane] is a senior player, he has played a lot and he told me that even if I make a mistake, you come and talk to me and tell me on the spot because we are the last recognized pair. So, the more we stay on the pitch, the more the team will benefit,” the all-rounder opined.

Here’s how fans reacted on Shardul Thakur’s statement:

https://twitter.com/candidtruth12/status/1667397915772608517

Lord level mindset

— Dhruv (@being_ingenious) June 10, 2023

https://twitter.com/VaradDesale/status/1667398309336739840

https://twitter.com/Jay_KD77/status/1667438805367013377

in Lord we believe

— Captain (@iEatCricket) June 10, 2023

Yes true it’s game and anything can happen

— Nitin jain(Sachinsuperfan) (@NitinSachinist) June 10, 2023

We are gonna chase 550 and Lord will score a double century

— Ujjawal Athrav (@Ujjawal_athrav) June 10, 2023

Tough to do with only 3 performing batsmen – Rahane, Jadeja and Thakur.

— Dr Nikhil Jain | SEBI RA (@iamMarketWiz) June 10, 2023