Thomson full of praise for Mumbai pacer Shardul Thakur

“Shardul has done the hard work, two years of hard work. What would have been very disappointing for me, not that I had a great deal to do with it as he’s very talented, is if he had not been picked for 

India. That’s (his selection) fantastic,” said Thomson here on Wednesday.

The 65-year-old former tearaway fast bowler, who used to terrorise batsmen around the world with his pace and aggression, is in the city “Shardul is as good as anyone else. If he can bowl as well as he has done here, he can clean up a lot of batsmen. Don’t be surprised if he gets a game (in the West Indies) and does better than the others,” said Thomson.

Thakur, who spearheaded the Mumbai bowling attack with 41 wickets during the team’s triumphant run in the Ranji Trophy, is part of the Virat Kohli-led squad which is to play a four-Test series in the West Indies in July-August.

“We found a bit more talent this year than last, especially with younger kids - 16 upwards - which is pretty young for fast bowlers. I can feel the difference over the last one year. They are so much fitter and faster. These kids are rookies picked from poor areas, not gifted with money. You got to be a little crazy to become fast bowlers, need to dislike batsmen and should be prepared to do the hard work,” said Thomson.