Hardik Pandya has become the talk of the town following his commendable contributions during the India tour of England. The all-rounder played a pivotal role in helping the Men in Blue clinch the T20Is and ODIs by identical margins of 2-1. On Sunday, he played a crucial 71-run knock to ensure India’s 5-wicket win against England at Old Trafford, Manchester. His innings came after registering career-best ODI bowling figures of 4/24.
Hardik Pandya has been on a remarkable run this year so far. After recovering from a persistent backache, he has been at his best in almost every game he played in the past 3-4 months. His recent performances have earned him praises from experts of the game and the latest individual to join the bandwagon is Aakash Chopra.
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In his latest YouTube video, Chopra termed Pandya an asset for Team India, adding that there is no replacement available for the 27-year-old.
“Hardik Pandya – he has been absolutely stellar. One thing is getting proved that he is India’s most valuable player in white-ball cricket. I don’t think there is going to be anyone who is going to come close to him,” said Chopra in his YouTube Video.
“If Hardik Pandya is fit, his replacement is not available. You will get many spin-bowling all-rounders in India, you get them easily, in different formats, but you don’t get a fast-bowling all-rounder at all, it is not possible at all,” he added.
Hardik’s stint as Gujarat Titans skipper in the IPL 2022 is believed to be the biggest turning point in his career. Chopra also believes that the captaincy in the T20 league has turned him into a more mature cricketer.
“Now that he has come back to full spring as a bowler, he is bowling well, and a different level of maturity is being seen in his batting. You will also have to probably thank the IPL for that because he got the responsibility, and got the chance to play in a different fashion.
“Now it is not that you just come in the end and play as a finisher. The team has asked more, he has delivered more. So this has been an extremely beautiful thing. In my opinion, the No. 1 performer for this entire white-ball series, Hardik without a doubt,” Chopra said.
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