Ishant Sharma : I have to accept that I didn't do well in shorter formats

Sharma has had a career that promised much but delivered little. While he terrorized batsmen in conditions conducive to bounce, his uni-dimensional skills have stopped the pacer from flourishing in different conditions. Once pegged to be India's spearhead, he has flitted in and out of the scene although his place in the overseas Test squads has been more or less certain.

In a candid interview, the lanky pacer opened up about his shortcomings and strengths and said, "You have to be honest to yourself and that makes it easier for you to accept things. I have to accept that I didn't do well in shorter formats. But I am doing well in Tests and so I know what my strengths are. It's important to know what your strengths are," to bcci.tv yesterday.

Comparing himself with Bhuvneshwar Kumar, Ishant said that neither can hope to replicate the other's bowling strengths and should play to them.

"Bhuvi (Bhuvneshwar Kumar)'s strength is swing but he can't extract the bounce like I can do. Similarly, I can't get the ball to swing like Bhuvi," said Ishant.

The bowler has learned to play the role of senior in a relatively young Indian squad.

I am sharing my experiences and hoping that what worked for me also work for them. But then they have to also identify their areas of strength.

The West Indies tour is not one pacers look forward to anymore what with the pitches beaten out of life and resembling Indian pitches of late. Speaking about the tour, Ishant said, "You have to have enough overs under your belt. You have to work hard enough even if conditions are not favourable. It is easy to give up and say there's nothing in the wicket so spinners will do the job and we will only try to hit the areas. It doesn't work like that. Specially for me, as I like to go flat out whether it is my second or third spell. I love to give my hundred percent," reported PTI.