Took inspiration from Aparajith & Washington for hundred: Shankar

DINDIGUL: With his unbeaten 112 against

Karaikudi Kaalai

here on Friday, Bharath Shankar became the third centurion in the TNPL's brief history after

B Aparajith

and Washington Sundar. The 23-year-old said the efforts of Aparajith and Washington egged him on to match their feat.

"Both Aparajith and Washington are in my age group. So, when they hit centuries, I took inspiration from them. Last year, Aparajith's ton came in a chasing effort. Washington, meanwhile, has been in roaring form this year. So, I was definitely motivated to replicate their efforts," Shankar told TOI.

He has perhaps made a strong case to make a comeback into the Tamil Nadu side. For the

Ruby Trichy Warriors

opener, though, just the fact that he is injury-free once again and back on the park is a relief in itself.

Shankar suffered a gruesome back injury during the TNPL last year and was out of the game for nearly nine months before making a comeback in June.

"I suffered a lot due to the back injury. I wasn't even able to bend properly. I was very down. At that time, Chepauk Super Gillies physio Karthik came to my rescue. He asked me to come to his clinic and got me back to normal. Trainer Rajamani also helped me out. I admit that I have put on a lot of weight because of the injury, but he made me stronger," he added.

As a result of the lengthy layoff, Shankar concedes that he gained a lot of weight and perhaps gave the impression that he doesn't care enough. The Chennai lad now wants to put things right and focus on getting his body back to peak condition. "My main target after the TNPL is to work a lot on my fitness and get my body into a very good shape," Shankar, whose last appearance for Tamil Nadu in the Ranji Trophy came against Madhya Pradesh in October 2015, informed.