Vijay Shankar managed to impress in the New Zealand limited overs series with the bat but could not get much chances with the ball. The inclusion of Hardik Pandya over shadowed his role in the team but the latter one’s injury again brought the former one into the contention for the Australia ODI series. Sometimes its the luck and the destiny which can be crucial turnover in one’s career and the disastrous innings of Shankar in the Nidahas trophy 2018 final was one moment when many thought that we would never make it into the national team again.
However, he managed to impress for his state team and India “A” on a consistent basis and Hardik Pandya’s controversy and injury kept Shankar in the hunt for the world cup.
The Tamil Nadu all-rounder’s consistent run with the bat led the selectors show faith in him as they finally included him in the world cup squad and handed him the crucial batting slot of number four. The 28-year-old could not do much with the bat for Sunrisers Hyderabad in the recently concluded Indian Premier League which raised a few eyebrows. Another factor is the comparison of Shankar with much fancied Hardik Pandya who is the second pace bowling all-rounder in the team.
Shankar has finally stepped up and spoke about the much hyped comparison between him and Pandya.
“I don’t think I am competing with Hardik. He is a terrific cricketer. Yes, we are all-rounders but we are different from each other. And why do we need to compete? It would be great if both of us can contribute in India’s victory,” Shankar was quoted as saying by a report published in India Today.
The IPL performance
Despite some controversy on Kofee with Karan and injuries that kept Pandya out of the national team, he managed to impress in the recently concluded IPL for the Mumbai Indians, who went onto pip CSK in the final to win their fourth trophy. The Baroda lad shined with the bat in the lower middle order and picked crucial wickets for the team. On the other hand, Shankar failed to live upto his expectation with the bat and didn’t got much opportunities to showcase his importance with the ball.
