Star Indian batter Hardik Pandya recently sat down for an interview with the ICC, where he reminisced about the iconic India vs Pakistan match in Melbourne during the 2022 ICC T20 World Cup in Australia. Hardik, who contributed with both bat and ball in the match, described his spell—during which he dismissed Shadab Khan and Haider Ali—as highly satisfying.
He explained that he was aware the Pakistan batters were likely to play aggressive shots against him. To counter this, he strategically positioned fielders to capitalize on any mistimed shots, a tactic that ultimately paid off.
Hardik took three crucial wickets in the game, helping India restrict Pakistan to a modest total of 159. He then teamed up with Virat Kohli to deliver one of India’s most memorable victories over Pakistan.
You can watch his interview here:
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Hardik Reflects on Game-Changing Wicket of Heinrich Klaasen
Hardik Pandya reminisced about taking the pivotal wicket of Heinrich Klaasen in the 17th over. He stated:
“Just before the ball, I just told him (Rohit Sharma) that I’m gonna go wide to Klaasen and I just knew that he’s gonna expect a ball which is on the stumps. His leg was a little to the leg-side, so I knew that he’s gonna try to hit me there and that’s when I, just before my run-up, just looked at him and said I’m gonna go slow because I didn’t set a field for a slower ball.”
“I had to outfox him or I had to be a little one up in the game so he’s not aware of what ball is coming, because the way he was hitting it was just tremendous. That just opened the door for us,” Pandya recalled.
On the final delivery, as Suryakumar Yadav made the iconic catch on the boundary ropes, Hardik was seen dropping to his knees. Reflecting on that moment, he said:
”It felt like a huge weight lifted off my shoulder. It was a sense of relief. I’m really proud of how I managed to stay composed and not show too much emotion, despite everything I’ve been through.”
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