India’s star all-rounder Hardik Pandya is one of the key players of the national cricket team. He is hailed as one of the best all-rounders to have played for the Indian cricket team, especially in the shortest format of the game. His skills and batting styles are often appreciated by former cricketers and experts from around the world. Among many, former Indian head-coach Ravi Shastri has also appreciated Hardik for his amazing cricketing skills.
Time and again, Shastri has openly expressed his admiration for Pandya. He earlier credited Hardik as the ‘best T20 all-rounder in the world’. Recently, Shastri was asked about his views on former India cricketer Sunil Gavaskar’s comment on Pandya.
Well, for the unversed, in a recent interview with Sports Tak, Sunil Gavaskar had backed Hardik to be India’s match-winner at the World Cup 2022 and also went on to compare him with Ravi Shastri. Gavaskar said that Pandya can emulate the exploits of Shastri from the 1985 World Cup, which saw the former all-rounder score 182 runs in 5 games – including 5 fifties and 8 wickets.
He had said: “Yes, I think he could possibly do what Ravi Shastri did in 1985 where Ravi was the outstanding performer with both bat and ball in the entire tournament. Some good catches as well. Hardik Pandya is capable of doing that.”
Reacting to Gavaskar’s statements on Hardik, Shastri told Sports Tak, “I have already tweeted and posted on Instagram that he is the No. 1 all-rounder in this format of the game. What else do you need? I had said it two weeks back. What else is there to add or subtract? XYZ can say whatever they want… everyone is entitled to his opinion. My view is clear, which is what I tweeted a couple of weeks ago.”
Hardik Pandya has been playing international cricket for the last six years and today he has emerged as one of the finest all-rounders in the world. He recently made the greatest comeback ever in the world of cricket, after he bounced back into the form and led Gujarat Titans to the title-win in the IPL 2022 and followed by his return to the national set-up. He is currently in the form of his life and is expected to play an important role in the upcoming T20 World Cup 2022.
