NEW DELHI: Indian pacer Shardul Thakur, who was traded to Mumbai Indians (MI) from Lucknow Super Giants for Rs 2 crore ahead of IPL 2026, said former skipper Rohit Sharma played a key role in helping him feel confident and express himself freely. The 34-year-old, part of India’s Test squad during the England tour earlier this year, is hopeful of reliving the “good old days” at his former franchise.Go Beyond The Boundary with our YouTube channel. SUBSCRIBE NOW!“Abhi and Pata will run together when you sit together. You will have a lot of fun,” said Shardul, looking forward to reuniting with his “chaos partner” Rohit.
Reflecting on their bond, he added, “He made me comfortable, he allowed me to be free with him, he allowed me to express myself. We became comfortable with each other and he played a major part in it,” as quoted on the Mumbai Indians website.Shardul’s association with MI began long before his IPL career took off — back in 2010, when he joined the squad as a support bowler. He said that early exposure helped shape his cricketing journey.“I was lucky enough to experience the dressing room early in my days. I was already feeling comfortable in front of senior players. Somewhere down the line, whatever the way I was treated during Mumbai Indians camp also, that small gesture from the Mumbai Indians helped me a lot to grow in my career.“I was made to play practice games. I bowled with a new ball, so that boosted my morale and confidence to another level, and I was picking wickets.”He credited coaches Rahul Sanghvi and Paras Mhambrey for guiding him through his developmental years, but said the most surreal part was sharing space with icons.“I was seeing Sachin Tendulkar, Harbhajan SinghMunaf Patel, Andrew Symonds, Rohit Sharma, Ambati Rayudu… and I’m sharing the same dressing room with them. It was surreal,” said Shardul, who has represented India in 13 Tests, 47 ODIs and 25 T20Is since his debut in 2017.Shardul also shared memories from his younger days in Mumbai, when simply catching a glimpse of cricket royalty felt magical.“So whenever the train passed, we used to get up from our seats, come near the door, and try to sneak in and see who’s practicing. Even getting a glimpse of the great Sachin Tendulkar playing, we would have been happy,” he recalled.
