India made a solid start to their Asia Cup campaign by notching up a five-wicket win over arch rivals Pakistan in a nail biting encounter that went into the last over of the game. The man who stole the show for the Men in Blue was Hardik Pandya who put on a stellar show with both bat and ball.
Pandya finished with figures of 3/25 off his four overs in a spell where he peppered the Pakistan batsmen with his pace and a flurry of short balls. In fact he took the crucial wickets of Ifthikar Ahmed and Mohammad Rizwan who ere building a steady partnership, while also chipping in with the scalp of Khushdil Shah.
With the bat Pandya smashed 33 off 17 balls, as he smashed crucial boundaries in the death, even finishing the game in style with a six in the third ball of the final over of the innings.
India next take on Hong Kong on Wednesday (August 31), winning which would take them into the Super Four stage by topping the group. However, former India wicketkeeper Parthiv Patel believes that Hardik Pandya should be rested for the game. Instead, he feels that Deepak Hooda should be played in the game.
“I don’t see Hardik Pandya bowling against Hong Kong. So there’s no point in making him play if he is not going to bowl. We know what he can do with the bat and is high on confidence. He is fielding well and bowling well. So, if he isn’t playing, then Deepak Hooda could come in,” he said in an interaction with Cricbuzz.
Ajay Jadeja who was part of the same discussion also felt that Deepak Hooda should play the game along with someone like Ravi Bishnoi who would gain from the experience.
“Deepak Hooda and Ravi Bishnoi are young guys and would want a game against anyone. So, they are not going to see it this way that the No.6 might not get to bat, or a bowler who bowls in the latter stages might not have wickets left. They would want an opportunity and they would love it,” Jadeja said.
