If Hardik Pandya Doesn't Bowl, India Can Use One Of The Younger Blokes - Ricky Ponting

Former Australia skipper Ricky Ponting pointed out that the Indian team can make a few changes in their T20I strategy by trying out one of the youngsters instead of all-rounder, Hardik Pandya.

The 27-year-old Baroda player hasn’t bowled much in recent times and his form with the bat is not something to boast about either. As a result, India’s balance is affected and they can do better if they start looking beyond Hardik, as per Ponting.

“They had Ishan Kishan and Suryakymar Yadav in the squad, they are starting to bring a few younger guys in. Shreyas Iyer, he was one of the emergencies [sic] around the squad but you are not going to push Rohit Sharma out, Virat out or KL Rahul out.“

“They have got Hardik Pandya in there, maybe if he’s not bowling, they can use one of those younger blokes in the middle order but yeah there’s just so many of them. So many good young players that when one of their senior guys doesn’t go well you think ‘Better put these young blokes in’ but yeah, they have got too many that’s why these questions come up,” Ponting mentioned on The Grade Cricketer podcast.

“India’s run in T20 World Cup, you’ve to understand where they’ve been” – Ricky Ponting

Ricky Ponting went on add that the Indian team’s poor scheduling might have had a part to play in their Super 12 stage exit from the T20 World Cup. Virat Kohli and co. had the second leg of the IPL 2021 just a few days prior to the tournament and the long England tour before that.

“Yeah, I think, they were just exhausted. I mean, their run, what they have had – you’ve got to understand where they have been. Their whole country has been in lockdown and the last year’s IPL in the UAE, they played their domestic cricket at home, then went to England in between then straight into another bubble in the UAE, played there, and then straight into the World Cup. Now they’ve got New Zealand two days after the World Cup,” Ponting added.

India lost their first two games in the T20 World Cup against Pakistan and New Zealand. Now, they are engaged in a 3-match T20I series against New Zealand at home.

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