The T20 World Cup 2022 encounter between arch-rivals India and Pakistan at the MCG on Sunday evening was probably one of the most thrilling contests that one would have experienced in recent times. The game witnessed every aspect of cricket in the final over, be it catches, stumping, a big six, running single, double, or three runs, byes, no-ball, free-hit, wide, and whatnot. The final over had all the drama.
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Hardik Pandya scored 40 runs and took three wickets as India won their T20 World Cup opener against Pakistan on Sunday. While Virat Kohli with his knock of 82 not out clinched the player of the match award, the all-rounder contribution of Hardik also deserves a lot of praise. After the collapse of the top order, the duo joined hands and battled till the end in front of the fiery bowling attack of Pakistan. Kohli and Hardik stitched a crucial 113-run partnership which turned out to be the key to the victory.
In a discussion on A Sports, former Pakistan cricketers Waqar Younus, Wasim Akram, and Misbah ul Haq opined on how the star all-rounder may eventually become India's captain.
“Hardik Pandya ko agar aap dekhe, pehli dafa usne shayad captaincy ki hai, IPL main, and the way he led the team. Unhone IPL jeeti hai. Usse andaza hota hai ki how he handled the pressure. Especially uska bhi jo role hai team main as a finisher. And finisher aap team main tabhi ho sakte hai jab aap mentally strong ho and ek self-belief ho. And woh read kar rahe the ki kis tarike se le ke jaa sakte hai,” Haq said on A Sports.
In this context, Younis jumped into the conversation right away and stated that the Indian all-rounder could also be named India’s upcoming captain as he has been delivering such impressive performances in recent times. He asserted, “If he (Pandya) becomes the next Indian captain, I won’t be shocked.” Following the remark, Akram continued by saying that Pandya became a cool customer of the circuit since his IPL success with Gujarat.
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It was then Akram who joined the bandwagon after Younis’ comments as he added:
“Pehle woh IPL main captain bana, waha jeeta. Abhi woh team main ek main force hai, woh captain ko advice deta hai, ek calm influence hai, and he is learning. Ekdum se agar deep end main daal do toh usko samjh hi nehi ayegi.”
