Former India head coach Ravi Shastri emphasised on the value that Hardik Pandya brings to the setup, given his supreme all-round skills.
Pandya has been one of the most evolved and improved cricketers of late, thanks to him regaining his fitness that has aided consistency to his bowling. He has been extremely efficient with the bat and ball this season, having first led Gujarat Titans to the 2022 Indian Premier League triumph in their maiden year of participation before making an impact for India in Ireland, England and the West Indies thereafter.
During a press conference organised by Star Sports, Shastri spoke highly of Pandya, explaining how important he is to the team.
“He (Pandya) is one of the most important cogs in the wheel as far as India is concerned.”
“You take him out of the squad and the balance goes away. That’s how important he is. You don’t know whether to play an extra batsman or an extra bowler.”
Hardik’s persistent injury woes had kept him away from bowling for quite a long time, until he delivered the goods in IPL this year. He scored 487 runs at 44.27, and bagged eight wickets while maintaining an economy of 7.28 – his lowest in an IPL season.
In the decider of the three-match ODI series against England at Old Trafford last month, Hardik returned 4/24 from seven overs, dismissing Jason Roy, Liam Livingstone, Ben Stokes and Jos Buttler, before scoring 71 off 55 in a 260-run chase after having walked in at 4/72.
Shastri, who last coached India during the T20 World Cup 2021 last year, wherein they had fallen out of the semi-final race after back-to-back defeats to Pakistan and New Zealand, revealed how his bowling was missed in the competition.
He also marked speedster Jasprit Bumrah as one of India’s key players, and stressed on the importance of player management in the fast-tracked modern-day game.
“We missed him really badly last year in the (T20) World Cup when he couldn’t bowl. It makes a massive difference. There is no one close to him when it comes to the quality that he possesses at that number.
I think he is an extremely important player and has to be watched very closely. With the number of matches coming up, he is the last person you want to play in all those matches.”
India, under Rohit Sharma, have embraced a newly adopted ultra-aggressive approach in T20Is, and the skipper has reiterated that the same would continue in future, regardless of the outcome. Shastri backed the idea, admitting that the style of play during his tenure “was a bit timid”.
“They should not change the approach (they have shown of late). Even when I was coach we discussed we were a bit timid at the top considering the players we had down the order.
“It is the right approach. You will lose a few games in between but if you start winning with this approach you can take that confidence in big games and use the same tactics.”
India’s next assignment is the Asia Cup 2022 in the UAE, where they begin their campaign against Pakistan at the Dubai International Stadium on August 28.
India are the most successful team in the competition’s history, having lifted the trophy seven times till date – in 1984, 1988, 1990-91, 1995, 2010, 2016 and most recently in 2018.
