How good is Hardik Pandya?
Hardik Pandya made his debut in the international cricket last year, but he is already being seen as one of the emerging players of India. The young all-rounder from Gujarat impressed everyone with his performance in the 2017 Indian Premier League. Let us have a look at his statistics till now to see if he could be India's next big find.
Why having an all-rounder in a team critical?
While some batsmen can bowl and a few bowlers are known to hit big shots, an all-rounder helps to maintain the balance in the team. All-rounders like Kapil Dev, Jacques Kallis, Yuvraj Singh and Shahid Afridi have helped their team with both bat and ball, doing a job of two players. Having a good all-rounder is like having a team of 12 players.
Dependable middle order batsmen
Hardik Pandya has come to India's rescue with his small cameos down the batting order. He has scored 79 runs at a strike-rate of 151.92 in three ODI innings, which looks impressive given he has played only 6 innings till now. His nine-ball-19 against England earlier this year and six-ball-20 against Pakistan in the Champions Trophy helped India put crucial runs on the board.
A heroic seam bowler
Hardik Pandya's ability to bowl constantly at a speed of 140 kmph grabbed everyone's attention in the 2016 World T20. He now has 11 ODI wickets from 11 innings and 15 T20 international wickets from 18 innings. Pandya picked up three wickets in his very first ODI in October 2016 to win the 'Man of the Match' award.
Mumbai Indians' go-to man
Hardik, along with his brother Krunal, helped Mumbai Indians in tough situations in the recently concluded IPL. He scored 250 runs from 17 matches and picked up six wickets. His match-winning cameo in the last overs of the match helped Mumbai to reach the finals and eventually win the title. His fielding has been a highlight of this IPL with an incredible 12 catches.
Kumble calls Hardik a special talent
After the ODI series against England this year, Indian coach Anil Kumble said, "It is very rare when someone can run in and bowl close to 140 kph and bat in the middle order, lower middle order. That is the ability that Hardik brings in."
