Former Pakistan skipper Babar Azam heaped huge praise on flamboyant India all-rounder Hardik Pandya after his match-winning performance on Sunday. In the thrilling Asia Cup 2022 encounter, Pandya impressed many with his all-round show. He troubled the Pakistan batters with his short balls. Pandya bowled with a well-executed plan as he had a proper field set-up for his surprise short balls. He ended up taking three wickets including the crucial one of Mohammad Rizwan who was the highest scorer for Pakistan with a 43-run knock.
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However, when things were going sideways during the chase, Pandya stepped up on the occasion and hit three boundaries in the penultimate over to shift the momentum in India’s favour. Later in the final over when India required 6 runs from the last three balls, he finished off the game in style with a maximum.
Babar admitted that having a player like Pandya in the squad is an advantage for any side in T20 cricket.
“Definitely, having Hardik Pandya in the squad is an advantage for any side in T20 cricket. He bowled and bat brilliant against us today and the way he finished the game proves that he is a very good all-rounder,” Babar said in the press conference.
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The Pakistan captain further talked about the effort his players put on the field while defending a moderate target of 148.
“We are not scared of the toss. It totally depends on the effort you put into the field. Toss doesn’t matter much the effort matters. Sometimes you even win while defending 120 but lose while defending 150, it’s part of the game. However, the way the team responded, I am happy with the effort,” he added.
Earlier, on Sunday, Babar revealed the idea about holding Mohammad Nawaz for the end and said they wanted to have about 15 runs to defend in the final over.
“Thought was to take the game deep (and hold back Nawaz’s last over). Idea was to create pressure but Hardik finished well,” Babar said in the post-match press conference.
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