Pandya, Kohli’s go-to man

Subhash Rajta

Tribune News Service

Indore, September 25

Virat Kohli is always effusive in his praise of his teammates. The skipper, however, sounds overgenerous every time he expresses his admiration for Hardik Pandya. Barely an hour after Pandya had helped India clinch the series-winning game in Indore on Sunday, Kohli uploaded a video clip on his Twitter handle, in which he was seen asking Pandya how he felt batting at No. 4. 

Grinning from ear to ear, the skipper concluded by calling Pandya a “superstar”. Even after the first ODI of the series in Chennai, where Pandya struck a game-changing 66-ball 83, Kohli said “we are lucky to have him”. Coming from the skipper, these are huge compliments  for a player who has just started out at the international level. Yet, it’s all understandable. In Pandya, skipper Kohli has a weapon which no other Indian skipper had after the legendary Kapil Dev hung up his boots — a genuine pace-bowling all-rounder. In his nascent career, Pandya has managed to impress everyone with his all-round abilities, none more so than his skipper perhaps.

Positive and confident

Apart from his skills, Pandya’s supreme confidence in his abilities, almost bordering on arrogance, is also quite remarkable. When asked about his six-hitting prowess and how he smashed Australian leg-spinner Adam Zampa for three consecutive sixes in the first ODI, this is what he said: “... Zampa was bowling and I knew that I could hit a six off him anytime I wanted to. That’s my thinking, it’s about being positive and backing yourself. If I feel like it, I go for it.” There’s of course a bit of bravado there, but there’s no denying the fact that he’s a special talent, especially in the Indian context.

And his match-winning 72-ball 78 on Sunday, coming in at No. 4, has raised his stock further, what with Sri Lankan great Kumar Sangakkara also calling him a special talent. At No. 4, where more accomplished batsmen like Ajinkya Rahane, Manish Pandey and KL Rahul have struggled, Pandya adapted really well to the demands of the crucial spot — he reined in his attacking instinct to an extent and rotated the strike well when he and Kohli needed to build a partnership after the fall of the openers; and when the time came for launching an assault, he wasn’t found wanting. “It’s not just about hitting. It’s pretty important that I read the game... I can play all kinds of innings,” he said, hammering home the message that he’s not just a reckless six-hitter. But wasn’t adjusting to No. 4 spot difficult? “It does not make any difference where I bat. Rather than seeing it as a challenge, I see it as an opportunity,” pat came the reply, dripping in his characteristic nonchalance. “When I was told I was going to go out to next, I was happy. This is the first time I played so many balls, so it was great.”

Having a ball too 

While everyone seems to be talking about his game-changing batting, his bowling, which has been pretty impressive so far in the series, has gone rather unnoticed. As a first-change bowler, he has picked at least one wicket in every game, and that, too, of a top-order batsman. 

In Chennai, before spinners Yuzvendra Chahal and Kuldeep Yadav ran through the Aussies, Pandya had already brought them on their knees by dismissing dangerous Steve Smith and Travis Head in quick succession. He dismissed Smith again in Kolkata, and picked David Warner in Indore.

Ashton Agar out with fractured finger 

• Left-arm spinner Ashton Agar has been ruled out of the ongoing limited-overs series against India with a fractured finger, handing the visitors another setback after they lost the series by going down in the third ODI. Agar sustained the injury while fielding during Australia’s five-wicket defeat against India yesterday. Adam Zampa is most likely to replace him in the fourth ODI in Bengaluru on Thursday.
• Opener Shikhar Dhawan, who missed the first three games due to a family emergency, has been left out for the last two matches of the ongoing series. Barring this, there has been no change in the squad. — Agencies