After a 2-month long season of Indian Premier League (IPL) 2022, the focus will now shift to the 5-match T20I series at home against South Africa. The opener is scheduled to be played in Delhi and Team India will take the field under the leadership of KL Rahul. The upcoming series will also be the second phase of India’s preparation for the much-awaited T20 World Cup in Australia, later this year.
The likes of Hardik Pandya and Dinesh Karthik have made a comeback to the squad following a terrific stint in the IPL 2022. While Karthik returns after his last game at the 2019 World Cup in England, Pandya will be seen in Indian colours for the first time since the 2021 T20 World Cup.
Meanwhile, former Indian captain Sunil Gavaskar has opined that if Hardik and Rishabh Pant can bat at No.5 and 6 for India, the men in blue will easily get around 120 runs in just 6 overs. In a conversation with Star Sports network, the batting great said the duo of Pandya and Pant would be an ‘explosive combination’ in the death overs.
“I think he’ll probably be slotted at five or six. Just imagine, if India has a Hardik Pandya and a Rishabh Pant at five or six. They can probably swap around a little bit — that is going to be some explosive combination from the 14th to the 20th over,” Gavaskar said.
“In six overs, you can probably expect even maybe 100-120 runs. They are capable of doing that. So, that’s going to be an exciting aspect. That’s something I’m really looking forward to — Rishabh Pant and Hardik Pandya batting at five or six,” he added.
After spending time at the National Cricket Academy (NCA) in Bengaluru, Pandya returned to form in the IPL 2022. For the first time in tournament history, the all-rounder led a franchise and scored more than 450 runs (487 runs in 15 matches). He batted at an average of 44.27 and a strike rate of 131.27. He also pocketed eight wickets at an economy rate of 7.28.
Get all the latest updates on Cricket News, Cricket Photos, Cricket Videos, IPL 2022 Live Updates and Cricket Scores here