The former Australian fast bowler Glenn McGrath reckons that Hardik Pandya is a “two-in-one” cricketer and when he is in full flow and really confident about what he is doing, he can make a big difference for India with both bat and ball.
Hardik Pandya, who was not bowling a lot last year after his back surgery, has been contributing immensely since the time he returned to the national set-up after a 3-month break. After winning the IPL title with Gujarat Titans as captain, Hardik played a crucial role for India in their dual series triumph in England in both T20I and ODI cricket.
Even in yesterday’s T20I game against West Indies, which India lost in the last over, Hardik scored 31 runs after India lost 4 early wickets and then bowled a spell of 4 overs where he conceded less than a run a ball.
According to Glenn McGrath, who is currently the director of coaching at MRF pace foundation and was talking to the press yesterday, Hardik has got match-winning skills in all three departments of the game and that’s what makes him such a valuable player. He is also someone who thrives on confidence and right now, the way he is playing, it seems he is full of confidence about his abilities.
Hardik Pandya has also been named vice-captain of India against the West Indies
Hardik Pandya, in the absence of KL Rahul, has also been elevated to the position of vice-captain in the ongoing T20I series against the West Indies. Even though Rishabh Pant was given the captaincy in the home series against South Africa earlier this year and he was supposed to be the next leader in line after Rohit Sharma and KL Rahul, Hardik appears to have climbed the ladder now.
One of the reasons behind that might also be the fact that Hardik is an automatic selection in both of India’s white ball teams, while there are a few question marks over Rishabh Pant’s spot in India’s T20I XI.
