Hardik Pandya justified the all-rounder tag in a high-voltage clash against Pakistan in the defending champions' Asia Cup 2022 opener. First, Pandya took three wickets in the middle overs. Then, he walked in to bat in a tough situation, stayed calm and finished the game with one ball to spare.
Pandya looked sure of his abilities finishing the game and conveyed it to non-striker Dinesh Karthik before hitting the match-winning six. After getting India over the line, Pandya revealed his plans while bowling.
“In bowling, it's important to assess the situations and use your weapons. For me, bowling short and the hard lengths have been my strengths. It's about using them well and asking the right questions to make the batters commit a mistake,” the all-rounder said in the post-match presentation.
While India needed seven runs from the final over bowled by left-arm spinner Mohammad Nawaz, Pandya felt that he would have chased down an even bigger target in the final over.
“In a chase like this, you always plan over-by-over. I always knew that there is one young bowler and also one left-arm spinner. We only needed 7 off the last over but even if we needed 15, I'd have fancied myself. I know the bowler is under more pressure than me in the 20th over. I try to keep things simple,” the Baroda all-rounder concluded.
Pandya walked in to bat in the 15th over of the run chase when India needed 59 more runs to win. At the end of the innings, he remained unbeaten for 33 runs off 17 deliveries including four fours and one six.
Earlier, he got the wickets of Iftikhar Ahmed, Mohammad Rizwan and Khushdil Shah. He conceded 25 runs in his quota of four overs. This was the third time Hardik achieved the double of three-plus wickets and 30-plus runs.
