One of the biggest plus points for the Indian team during the India-Australia series has been the emergence of Hardik Pandya as one of the main all-rounders in the team.
Hardik Pandya has been able to come up the order and smash runs all over the place while also ensuring that he does not play rashly. Further, he is evolving with the ball and is getting more crucial wickets than before.
The Indian captain, Virat Kohli has been happy with the progress that Pandya has made. He said, “For now, the plan to promote Hardik was to go after the spinner. (The idea was to) probably push the spinner out of the attack and get the quicks to come earlier into the game. He did that in the last game and he did it this time too, and batted nicely. Hardik has got a solid defence and he has got technique. He is not just a slogger. If he gains more confidence and if he can understand how to take the game till the end, he might be a regular at that spot. We are not predictable and are willing to do different things to put the opposition out.”
Virat Kohli was also happy with the partnership between Jadhav and Pandya and felt it was ideal for them to understand it. He said that they did a very good job with the partnership. Kohli also praised his fast bowlers, Umesh and Shami for coming back after a long break and performing well on a flat wicket.
He said that it was important to try these guys out at any stage and try out the strength of the bench. He said that Umesh’s ability to pick up 4 wickets was fantastic. Further he added, “The runs might have been a bit more than what he would have expected but we only lost by 20-odd runs. We did not bat that badly.
“The wicket was good. The bowlers bowled well and credit goes to them. In hindsight, if you lose, I am not that kind who thinks that I should not have done this. If it does not work, you make another plan and go for it and try execute it well. We have no doubts about why we rested both of them.”
