Shardul Thakur says national selectors haven't spoken to him since his return from injury

Shardul Thakur’s Test debut in October, against Windies, lasted for a mere 10 balls as a groin injury forced him out of action. But the pacer is back on the cricket ground, playing for Mumbai in Ranji Trophy. In his second match since the disappointing injury, Thakur took eight wickets in the match for his side against Chhattisgarh as Mumbai registered their first win of the season, on Wednesday. [caption id=“attachment_3991161” align=“alignleft” width=“380”] File image of Shardul Thakur. AP[/caption] Despite the 27-year-old recently making a return from injury, no selectors have tried to get in touch with the cricketer since his return. “No one has spoken to me yet,” Thakur was quoted as saying by Times of India on whether he has had any communication with the selectors. According to the report, there was no selector present as well at the Wankhede Stadium, the venue of Mumbai’s match. Thakur’s claim however, has been rebuffed by a BCCI source. “The selectors have been speaking to him from the time he was set to return to action, in Mumbai’s Ranji Trophy game against Vidarbha at Nagpur on New Year’s Eve. He’s been told that he should keep himself ready to play for India A for the limited overs and ‘Test’ series against the England Lions at home,” the BCCI source told TOI. The pacer also spoke about what he’s doing to return to the international level. “At the moment, I’m not worried about speed. I need to bowl as many overs as I can in a match, and take that experience with me so that when I play at a higher level, I can take that workload. Talking about my speed, it will come. I’ve been training, doing my fitness sessions,” Thakur said. Thakur is the latest Indian player to bemoan lack of communication from the side of national selectors. Earlier, batsmen Murali Vijay and Karun Nair spoke about the similar issue. Both the players said that the selection committee never clarified to them as to why they were being dropped from the side and what they need to do in order to get back. Chief selector MSK Prasad, however, on both occasions refuted the claims of the cricketers, saying that players are constantly consulted by selectors over the selection decisions.