Mohammed Azharuddin Finds Comparisons between Hardik Pandya and Kapil Dev Inadvisable

Former India captain Mohammed Azharuddin ridiculed the ongoing comparisons between the latest sensation of India cricket, Hardik Pandya, and one of the greatest all-rounders ever produced, Kapil Dev, by claiming the amount of workload shared by the Indian legend cannot be analogised.

Azhar further hailed the Indian bowler post their famous victory at the Bull Ring and tagged the result of the series as ‘unfortunate’.

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Just after Pandya’s breakthrough series against Australia back in October 2017, masses initiated comparisons between Kapil Dev and the Baroda all-rounder.

Many believed India’s long-term search for an all-rounder finally came to an end with Pandya making rapid strides in International cricket.

His performance in the first innings of the Cape Town Test under pressure where he scored a counter-attacking 93 and picked up valuable wickets with the ball in hand, further added fuel to the ongoing fire.

However, his performance in the series gradually declined, thus, forming a consensus about premature comparisons to a legend like a Kapil Dev.

“It is not advisable to do that. It is not good because there can never be another Kapil Dev. It is very difficult to get another Kapil Dev as the amount of hard work and workload he took over a period of time — he used to bowl 20-25 overs in a day — not many people can do it now,” commented Mohammed Azharuddin according to NDTV.

After losing the Freedom Series by 2-0, the Indian team displayed a tremendous amount of determination and character to win the final test match in Johannesburg where they boast a strong record.

“The bowlers won the last Test match. They really put South African batsmen under pressure. We were a bit unlucky that we could not get the series our way. It is good that we won the last Test. We redeemed our prestige. The team played very well in tough conditions. It was not an easy wicket to play on,” he said.” further added Azhar.

The India top order, apart from Virat Kohli, received a substantial amount of flak after being unable to cope up with testing conditions of South Africa.

However, the batting unit found their spine in a ‘poor’ rated pitch of Jo’burg in the second innings which led to an Indian victory.

“They batted well, bowled well everything clicked together. I am very happy with the team’s victory. In the ODIs, hopefully, our batting will click and we will win the series. I think they could have been played, but the captain and the team think in a different way. Outside everybody in India thinks they should have played,” concluded Mohammed Azharuddin.