Former Indian Test opener Aakash Chopra has showered praise on Hardik Pandya after Team India won the opening T20I against South Africa comprehensively by 101 runs at the Barabati Cricket Stadium, Cuttack on Tuesday.
Pandya, who was returning after recovering from a quadriceps injury, was able to hit the ground running and scored a match-winning knock of 59 runs off just 28 balls at a blistering strike rate of 210.71.
This was Pandya’s sixth fifty in T20Is and it helped India in posting a par score of 175 runs on a challenging wicket. The right-hander smashed six fours and four maximums and also completed 100 sixes in his T20I career, becoming the fourth Indian batter to reach the milestone.
Pandya took the attack against Keshav Maharaj from the get-go and played at the top of his game. The all-rounder timed the ball to perfection and hardly put a foot wrong in his return match.
“You suddenly realize how important this guy is in this team. Hardik actually does what very few players in our country can. If we talk about this match, everyone was struggling. However, he came and hit Keshav Maharaj for two sixes. Anrich Nortje was thrashed. You suddenly feel that this guy is at a different level. His quality of hitting is second to none,” Chopra said on his YouTube Channel.
The renowned commentator said no batter bats like Hardik Pandya towards the fag end of an innings.
“Of course, he bowls with the new ball as well. However, you can still get that job done by Arshdeep (Singh) and (Jasprit) Bumrah, but you cannot get anyone else to bat at this number. There is no batter like that. It’s not a slight on anyone else. Shivam Dube hits good shots, Jitesh Sharma can also do that job, and there might be a few more, but when Hardik bats, only he bats,” he added.
The former Delhi cricketer added that India wouldn’t have been able to reach 175 runs if not for Hardik Pandya’s heroics with the bat.
“He terrorizes bowlers. India reaching 175 wasn’t possible at all without Hardik Pandya’s incredible knock. This was his sixth T20I fifty. Whoever bats so low in the order doesn’t get to play too many balls, and that’s why you are unable to contribute for long in terms of the quantity of runs,” he said.
Pandya was also able to get a big wicket of David Miller and returned with figures of 1-16 in two overs. South Africa was bowled out for 74 runs to suffer a big loss.
The second T20I between India and South Africa will be played at Maharaja Yadavindra Singh International Cricket Stadium, Mullanpur, Chandigarh, on Thursday.
