LSG's Shardul Thakur calls for pitches giving "fair chance and opportunity" to bowlers ahead of PBKS clash

Lucknow (Uttar Pradesh) [India], March 30 (ANI): Ahead of his side's first home fixture against Punjab Kings (PBKS) on Tuesday, Lucknow Super Giants (LSG) pacer Shardul Thakur said that the bowlers want pitches that give them a "fair chance and opportunity" in the game.

LSG, who kickstarted their tournament with a loss to Delhi Capitals (DC) but bounced back against Sunrisers Hyderabad (SRH), will be playing their first home fixture of the season at Ekana Stadium on Tuesday against Shreyas Iyer-led Punjab Kings (PBKS), who started off the tournament with a fine win over Gujarat Titans.

Speaking ahead of the match as per ESPNCricinfo, Shardul said, "It is not what I want, but it is what the bowlers want. A lot of them might not be outspoken or they might not get a chance to speak in front of media or give interviews about the pitch conditions."

"All that the bowlers are asking is to prepare the pitch in such a manner that the game hangs in balance and it should not be just one-sided where batters are coming and smashing us, because all we want is a fair chance and fair opportunity in the game," he added.

Scores of above 200 have been scored by six teams already in IPL 2025 so far, with SRH piling up 286/6 in their first match of the season. Shardul is also critical of the Impact Player rule, but feels that more than the new rule, the pitches have to be better balanced. He termed the Impact Player rule as an "entertainment factor".

"We have already seen the rule change and the Impact Player rule coming in, so every team is potentially playing an extra batter, especially while chasing or even let's say you are batting first, then [everyone] is going in with that depth, because they have now an opportunity to change the batter and call a bowler while defending or vice versa," he said.

"The Impact Player rule is an entertainment factor and games change a lot, but that these 250 scores are being made is not only because of this rule change, but also because of the way the pitches are being made. We are just saying as a bowling unit that give us a fair and square chance where we can get a batsman out."

Shardul, who stepped in as a replacement for Mohsin Khan after being left unsold in the IPL auction last year, has been sensational so far in his two match run, having taken six wickets at an average of 8.83, with best figures of 4/34 against SRH. He is the third-highest wicket-taker this season so far. (ANI)

(The story has come from a syndicated feed and has not been edited by the Tribune Staff.)