Eng vs Ind: Shardul Thakur 'easily' the Man of the Match in 4th Test, says Hogg
Sep 07, 2021
London [UK], September 7 : Former Australia spinner Brad Hogg feels India all-rounder Shardul Thakur "easily" should have been the Man of the Match in the fourth Test against England.
Rohit Sharma for his brilliant ton in the second innings was awarded the Man of the Match award after India's sensational win over England at The Oval. Hogg listed out five "game-changing" moments from the fourth Test and explained why Shardul deserved to be the Man of the Match.
"57 in the 1st inns when the wicket was toughest. Fifty in the 2nd inns. Pope's wicket preventing a bigger 1st inns lead for England. Breaking the 100 run opening p'ship. Dismissing Root in the 2nd inns. Thakur the Man of the Match easily. 5 big game-changing moments," Hogg tweeted.
Even Rohit felt that Shardul should also have been named the Man of the Match alongside him for the performances the all-rounder gave during the Oval Test.
Indian bowlers delivered big time on the last day of the fourth Test at the Kennington Oval on Monday as the genius of Jasprit Bumrah, and all-round performance by Shardul in the match helped the visitors beat England by 157 runs to gain a 2-1 lead in the five-match series.
"I thought Shardul's was a match-winning effort. To be honest, he deserved the Man of the Match as well for the performance he put. A crucial breakthrough for the team when England was 100 without loss, getting that crucial breakthrough was very important and then getting the wicket of Joe Root as well, he came in and got the wicket," Rohit Sharma told bcci.tv.
"How can we forget his batting, to come in and score 50 off just 31 balls in the first innings says a lot, he loves his batting and he has worked hard on it, I have seen him over the years. He wants to prove a point that he can bat and can give us momentum-changing innings as well. Yes, I got the Man of the Match, but I really feel he should have been part of that as well," he added.
India and England will now lock horns in the fifth and final Test, beginning Friday in Manchester.
