Former India cricketer Ambati Rayudu lauded Hardik Pandya for his gritty innings in the third T20I against England in Rajkot on Tuesday, January 28. However, he felt that the all-rounder could have placed more trust in Dhruv Jurel’s batting ability.
Batting first for the third consecutive match after Suryakumar Yadav won the toss, England set a 172-run target for India. Hardik was the top scorer for the hosts, contributing 40 off 35 balls, but his efforts weren’t enough to prevent a 26-run loss.
Speaking on Star Sports, Rayudu shared his thoughts on Hardik’s knock and whether he was a bit late in accelerating the innings.
“It was a good performance because batting wasn’t that easy and wickets were falling from the other end. So he paced his innings well. However, when the finishing touch was required to be given, he could have shown a little faith in Dhruv Jurel,” he responded.
Praising Hardik’s power-hitting, the ex-CSK batter suggested the game could have been closer if he had trusted Jurel more.
“Even if 25 had been required in the last over, Hardik has the ability to hit that. So I feel if he had shown a little more confidence in Dhruv Jurel, the game might have been closer. However, the way he paced his innings was very heartening,” Rayudu observed.
“Hardik Pandya Rarely Goes Wicketless”– Piyush Chawla Praises His Spell
During the discussion, Piyush Chawla shared his thoughts on Hardik Pandya’s spell in Tuesday’s match.
“He is a wicket-taker. The wicket column for Hardik Pandya remains empty very rarely. If you pick up wickets with the new ball in T20s, and he dismissed Phil Salt, who is a good attacking batter, in his first over, and then he bowled well in the slog overs, I feel it was a very good spell from Hardik Pandya,” the veteran spinner replied.
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