T20 cricket is a format where a fast-bowling allrounder plays an important role in adding a balance to the playing XI. The bonus of having a player who can score some quick runs and bowl crucial overs is probably the best thing a captain can ask for in his team.
In T20 cricket where the batters have a slight edge over the bowlers, a team banks on a sixth-bowling option in their side who can turn up when their main bowler(s) is having an off-day.
T20 WC: ‘Hardik Pandya Would be The Main Player For Team India’
It is well documented how Team India has struggled to produce quality fast-bowling allrounders since the legendary Kapil Dev. They have had to wait a long time to find a player who can add value in both the departments.
The emergence of the cash-rich Indian Premier League provided a fertile land from which a steady supply of talented T20 cricketers was ensured. And it was through IPL that India found a missing piece of their jigsaw in Hardik Pandya.
Such are his skills that Pandya has become indispensable to India and it’s something they realised when a recovery from an injury prevented him from bowling at full tilt last year. The flamboyant all-rounder played the 2021 T20 WC as a batter and India sorely missed an extra bowling option.
After the even, Pandya took a short sabbatical to work on his bowling fitness and made himself unavailable for the selection for a few months. In IPL 2022, he was named the captain of Gujarat Titans and many predicted it to be a brave call – not necessarily in a positive sense. The 28-year-old then silenced his critics by proving his captaincy credentials and also showing he’s back to his old self as contributions from him came in all three departments.
After the tournament, he returned to India’s white-ball set-up and has again become a vital cog.
In an exclusive conversation with News18 CricketNext, former South Africa allrounder Lance Klusener, who used to play a similar role during his international career, said that he is very impressed with Pandya’s batting but suggested that the Indian team needs to try to get more out of him as a bowler.
“Look, I think Hardik is a fantastic player. I don’t have any reservations certainly with the bat and the way he plays is amazing. Possibly just squeezing out a little bit more performance with the ball a little bit more consistent performance, where he can be kind of pencilled in for his quota of overs in all forms of white ball cricket. So, that can possibly be an area where if he nailed down and, you could get 10 overs out of him and you add that to where his batting is then he becomes one of the best or if not the best all-rounder in the world. So I guess that’s a small area of growth for him. For Indian management to try and squeeze out that last bit of performance out of him certainly with the ball," Klusener told News18 CricketNext.
After his return, the Indian team management has used Pandya quite efficiently as he’s often rested during or between series to manage his workload. The captain and coach know the value the 28-year-old brings to the team and thus are wary of pushing him to his limits (as far as fitness goes).
Klusener further talked about the top fast-bowling all-rounders in world cricket at the moment. On being asked to choose the best between Pandya and Ben Stokes, Klusener dropped one more name to the debate.
The South African suggested that Australia’s Cameron Green has made a way for himself to the top and he is right up there with Pandya and Stokes in the race.
“Is it Cameron Green from Australia as well? He is a fantastic cricketer from what I’ve seen of him he has been absolutely incredible and he’s just a young man finding his way, so he’s right up there as well and in a very, very short space of time. Ben Stokes is probably only leading that because of his experience and he’s been doing it for quite a long time. You add Hardik Pandya into that mix as well. It makes three that I can just think of quickly who are right up there. All as good as each other on their day, I guess," he added.
Klusener recently stepped down as Zimbabwe’s batting coach and was in the team’s dressing room earlier this year watching India’s young batting sensation Shubman Gill score big runs against them.
During India’s tour of Zimbabwe, Gill was named Player of the Series for scoring 245 runs in three matches including a maiden century.
Klusener hailed the 22-year-old batter and said Gill has grown immensely and despite so much competition in Indian cricket he is certainly challenging for a consistent spot in the team.
“I think he’s played very well. You know, he certainly played well when I had the opportunity to see him in Zimbabwe. The thing with Indian cricket is that there’s so much competition. There are so many different views and opinions on players because the quality is just so good. And, I think he’s a fantastic cricketer. I think he’s learned and grown his game immensely over the last few years. And it’s nice for him to certainly be competing and certainly be challenging for a consistent space in white ball cricket," he added.
The 51-year-old was recently in India for the Legends League Cricket as a player for the South African team.
He shared his experience of the transition from being a coach to a player and also talked about the exciting concept of LLC.
“Yeah, I think coaching’s easier. So, maybe next time I’ll come back as a coach if there’s an opportunity. But I think the nice thing is that we’ve been able to play with guys that we’ve kind of always played against. So it’s nice to have them in our team and also just to get that competitiveness in each and every one of us that’s always there going again. So it’s, it’s been a great concept. I’ve been active in cricket, so to actually playing is slightly different, but not nothing major," Klusenser said.
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