Irfan Pathan believes Hardik PandyaHis ability to hit a six-six at any stage of the T20 innings makes him an extremely valuable asset to the team. Team India.
Hardik was called up back to the India squad for the T20I series against South Africa based on his performance in IPL 2022. The Gujarat Titans (GT) captain excelled with both bat and ball in the tournament and helped His team won the championship.
While speaking on Star Sports ‘Follow the Blues’Pathan had the following to say about Pandya’s return to India’s T20I team:
“Hardik Pandya is extremely valuable. He has the ability to end the match at his death, he can also do that to ensure order. The management will definitely keep this in their mind. The way Hardik beats, he can hit six at any time.”
The former all-rounder of India added that Pandya has also shown the ability to play a slightly more cautious game during IPL 2022. He explained:
“He also found a way to play down the pitch and for that, his IPL season has been very good as a hitter. With him coming in, you don’t have one but three finishers on the team. .”
Pathan concludes by observing that Pandya’s return gives Team India plenty of options in the finishing department. He further explained:
“You can talk about Rishabh Pant – he can act as the finisher, Dinesh Karthik has been selected as the finisher, will have to see if he gets a spot in the XI but there are still issues pick. We’ve managed to fill in the area that we find a bit desirable. So I’m delighted that he (Hardik’s) is joining.”
It will be interesting if the Indian team management plays the Pandya trio, Rishabh Pant and Dinesh Karthik together in the XI play. They may choose to go that route to address concerns about Team India’s recent completion.
“There was no competition or other options when he started bowling” – Aakash Chopra on Hardik Pandya
Aakash Chopra pointed out that Pandya brings unique skills to Team India. He observes:
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“Hardik Pandya in my opinion, not only in the T20 age group, is an important asset to India’s white ball cricket. There was no competition or other option once he started bowling, you’ve tried a lot but there’s no one like him.”
Honestly, the difference between Gujarat Titans and Rajasthan Royals is Hardik Pandya. Both teams had bowling gun attacks… but Hardik provided a much-needed balance in the XI… which RR didn’t. None of their top 6 players are bowling.
Pandya performed very well on himself with the ball for the Titans in IPL 2022. His 3/17 hit in the pivotal final was a game-defining performance.
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Q. Should India team play Hardik Pandya, Rishabh Pant and Dinesh Karthik together in XI play?
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