'Shardul Thakur's mysterious disappearance raises eyebrows as India plans debut of new 'Sourav Ganguly-like' player in Perth'

Hardik has been sidelined from the Indian Test team for quite some time now, mainly due to persistent back injuries since 2018. As a result, he has focused solely on white-ball cricket to manage his fitness and workload. During his absence from the longer format, Shardul Thakur emerged as a valuable asset for Team India. Known more for his bowling skills, Shardul showcased his capabilities with the bat as well, playing crucial innings as a lower-order batsman. His contributions were instrumental in India's historic triumph in Australia during the 2020/21 series. With the competition intensifying in the Test squad, Hardik will need to work hard to regain his place in the team.

Shardul was reportedly part of the discussion for the Border-Gavaskar Trophy, however, the Ajit Agarkar-led selection committee picked Nitish, who only made his international debut last month in the home T20I series against Bangladesh.

Speaking to Jatin Sapru on his YouTube channel, Harbhajan questioned the absence of Shardul and Hardik and he felt India have no other option but to play Nitish as the fifth-bowling option in Perth.

“You needed an all-rounder like Hardik Pandya. But you don't have an option but to play Nitish Kumar Reddy. Where is Shardul Thakur gone? Where is Hardik Pandya gone? We just confined them to shorter formats. You needed a player like Hardik. We started investing in Shardul for the last 2-3 years, but where is he now? Suddenly on a tour like this you are asking Nitish to bowl,” he said.

The Andhra all-rounder has so far played only 23 First-Class matches, scoring 779 runs at 21.05 with one century and two fifties. He also picked 56 wickets at 26.98, comprising two five-wicket hauls.

Harbhajan felt Nitish could play a role similar to how former India captain Ganguly used to assist the bowlers with his medium-pace variery.

“What he can do is just bowl a few overs here and there like Sourav Ganguly did, and if he gets 1-2 wickets, then that would be a bonus,” he said.