Virat Kohli's former Royal Challengers Bengaluru (RCB) teammate and former South Africa cricketer AB de Villiers lavished praise on India's star all-rounder Hardik Pandya for his no-look shot during the first T20I against Bangladesh at Shrimant Madhavrao Scindia Cricket Stadium in Gwalior.
Hardik was seen in great touch as he smashed unbeaten 39 off 16 which helped India to beat Bangladesh by seven wickets. The former Proteas skipper AB de Villiers compared Hardik's batting with WIndies batting legend Viv Richards. He gave the nickname " Hardia" to Hardik Pandya.
"And talking about Hardik Pandya, I don't know who of you saw that incredible shot he played, very Viv Richards-like, the no-look little dab over the slip Gordon or the keeper beating the third man and getting his boundary. Absolutely incredible, chewing on his gum, not looking at the ball and sort of just keeping that incredible presence and aura and pose that only Hardik can pull off. That's maybe a new nickname for him. Just insane skill there" said De Villers on his youtube channel.
Hardik Pandya was part of India's squad in the T20 World Cup 2024 where he was one of the reasons behind India's win against South Africa in the final. He scored 116 runs in six innings and he picked up eight wickets for India, behind only Arshdeep Singh (15) and Jasprit Bumrah (11).
Hardik will now be seen in the action during the third T20I against Bangladesh which will be played at Rajiv Gandhi International Stadium in Hyderabad on October 12.
