Out of the 90 overs bowled on Day-two of the Kolkata Test, Shane Shillingford bowled 41, in which he dismissed – Vijay, Dhawan, Tendulkar and Virat. For the remaining 49 overs, he fielded with complete dedication. West Indies’ 30-year-old off-spinner is indeed a tireless workhorse.
After ripping India’s top-order apart with a relatively new ball, Shillingford had to toil hard for the rest of the day wicketless, as Rohit Sharma and R Ashwin piled up an unbeaten 198-run partnership for the seventh wicket.
It was a combination of the easing wicket, older ball and tired limbs. But a tired expression turned instantly into a proud smile when, in a chat with bcci.tv, he was asked if the day had given him a story to tell his grandchildren. Here’s what Shillingford had to say about dismissing Tendulkar, resembling Harbhajan Singh and much more.
You bowled 41 overs and fielded throughout the day! That was a marathon effort.
Whenever playing against India, I always know it’s going to be a tough day in the office for me. The Indian batsmen play spin so well and so there’s a lot of pressure on me. I have to be prepared for the hard work and day-long toil. Thankfully, bowling long spells is one of my strengths and it was the best way in which I could contribute to the team. For that I had to be very patient and that’s what I displayed today.
Sachin Tendulkar dismissed you in the first innings and you had your revenge the very next day. A story to tell your grandchildren?
Most definitely. It’s a pleasure to watch Sachin bat; I’ve always called him the Master. After he got out, I saw that the ball was going a bit higher. But it was a great moment for me. Just bowling to the man is an honour.
Did you set Tendulkar up for a doosra before getting him with that delivery?
As an off-spinner doosra is always your subtle ball, especially to the right-handers, who tend to go on the front foot and clip the ball on the on-side. So, it wasn’t something that I planned particularly against Sachin; I try to do it to all batsmen.
Your action has an uncanny resemblance to that of Harbhajan Singh. Is it something natural or acquired?
Many people have told me this back home as well. I’ve always liked watching Bhajji bowl; he’s a wonderful off-spinner. But I never tried to bowl like him; this is my natural action. Yes, the hop before delivering the ball is very similar.
Like him, do you too depend on the bounce more than the turn?
Yes, sometimes, I do, especially when I’m trying to get a batsman out bat-pad. On this wicket I got that bounce early on with the new ball but as the day passed, it got slower and lower. So, I had to concentrate more on consolidating and building the pressure with dot balls.
Did it also become tough to trouble the batsmen as the ball got softer? Are you someone who prefers bowling with a hard cherry?
I definitely prefer the harder ball but today, given how quickly the wicket deteriorated, even with the hard ball I had to put in a lot of effort to get that bounce.
