IND vs ENG, Understanding Recovery Of My Body Helped Me Play This Long: Ishant Sharma

Pace bowler Ishant Sharma, who is on the cusp of becoming only the second India pace bowler to play 100 Test matches after Kapil Dev, says playing one format - Test cricket - over the last few years,

Sharma said he takes one game at a time.

"I don't really think too far ahead, because you never know what comes next. You just think about one game at a time. I have understood my body and what kind of training I need to do. I am more professional regarding my recovery. Earlier, I used to train very hard but I never used to think about my recovery."

"Now though I know that as you grow older, you have to bowl long spells. You need to look after your recovery. I am looking after myself. I think that is paying off," he said.

Sharma could have played his 100th Test in Australia were it not for a side strain during the Indian Premier League (IPL) that kept him out of that tour. He, however, says that he hadn't allowed that to upset him.

"I would have loved to go to Australia and complete my 100th Test match. But there are many things that are not in your hand. I couldn't go to Australia because of that [injury]. The quicker you forget things and move on, the more things become simple in life."

"This is what I have learnt in my career. Forget everything and move on and don't think about the past. I move on to the next match. And I always focus on the next match," said the bowler who has been plagued by multiple injuries over the years.

The pace bowler's performance has been exceptional over the last three years. Since the start of 2018, he has taken 76 wickets in 20 Test matches at an average of 19.34 with four of his 11 five-wicket hauls in his career coming during that period.

"I just played too many Test matches outside India that is why I have been able to take these many wickets, because if you don't bowl in India, how will you take wickets. In India, spinners bowl a lot; fast bowlers' role is different. For most of the Tests in the last two years, we played outside. That is why I bowled a lot and picked wickets. That is what I feel."