"After pitching what's going to happen even I don't know" - When Shardul Thakur gave a hilarious explanation about the scrambled-seam delivery

Mumbai all-rounder Shardul Thakur scored a fantastic century on Day 2 of the Ranji Trophy 2024-25 match against Jammu and Kashmir at the Sharad Pawar Cricket Academy BKC in Mumbai on Friday, January 24. He smashed an unbeaten 113 off 119 balls, hitting 17 fours, as Mumbai reached 274-7 at Stumps on Day 2 of the Ranji Trophy 2024-25 clash.

After managing a paltry 120 in their first innings, Mumbai fought back to clean up Jammu and Kashmir for 206 as Mohit Avasthi claimed five wickets, while Thakur and Shams Mulani picked up two each. Mumbai, however, crumbled to 101-7 in their second innings before Thakur and Tanush Kotian (58*) added an unbroken 173 runs for the eighth wicket.

Thakur is known as a player who loves to deliver when the chips are down. Apart from his attitude as a cricketer, he is also loved by fans for his eccentricities as a bowler, which reflects in his personality as well. During the 2023 World Cup in India, he gave a hilarious reply when asked to explain how he bowls the scrambled-seam delivery.

In an interaction with Ian Bishop on ICC's Instagam handle, he said:

"I don't know. I just hold it like this and bowl it. I don't do much, happens whatever happens (smiles). It is difficult to get the ball to reverse in ODI cricket. So you have to use these tactics, maybe bowl cross-seam or scrambled seam. After pitching what's going to happen even I don't know. The batter is always guessing, I am always guessing, so probably leave it to the hands of God (laughs)."

Thakur played only three matches during Team India's 2023 ODI World Cup campaign. He did not get a chance to bat. With the ball, he picked up two wickets at an average of 51 and also took one catch.

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How Shardul Thakur responded to being dropped from the Indian team

Despite being one of the heroes of India's 2020-21 Test series win in Australia, Thakur was not picked for the recently concluded Border-Gavaskar Trophy. The cricketer shared his thoughts on not being part of the Indian team in recent times. Speaking after Day 1 of the Ranji Trophy 2024-25 match against J&K, he said:

"What can I talk about my quality? Others should talk about it. They should see that if someone has quality, he should be given more chances."

Before hammering a hundred in the second innings, Thakur had top-scored for Mumbai in the first innings as well, with 51 from 57 balls. His knock lifted the team to 120 after they had crumbled to 47-7.