SA vs IND 2018: Hardik Pandya Gives India the Edge - Lance Klusener
Within a year of making his ODI debut, Pandya became an indispensable part of the team across formats.
In July, he made an unexpected debut in Tests and went on to prove his detractors wrong by slamming a quickfire fifty in his maiden Test appearance. Two matches later, he announced his arrival at the highest stage of the game with a stunning 96-ball 108 runs knock including eight fours and seven sixes to bag his maiden Man of the Match award in Tests.
Before the Test series in Sri Lanka, he had impressed with his explosive batting in the Champions Trophy final, slamming 76 off just 43 balls with the help of four fours and six sixes. In the ODI series against Australia, he won the Man of the Series award for his consistent performances and is now being tipped by many to end India’s long wait for a pace-bowling allrounder.
The all-rounder is now gearing up for one of the toughest challenges of his short career so far, having been picked in the squad for the upcoming Test series against South Africa. Many feel that the 24-year old is still not prepared to excel on the tough pitches of South Africa but former Proteas all-rounder Lance Klusener believes the Baroda star will be crucial for India.
“An allrounder of the quality of Pandya gives India the edge both with the bat and ball. He is an exciting talent who provides balance to the Indian unit. Pandya -a medium-pacer who comes to bat lower down the order – provides skipper Virat Kohli with a lot of options with team combination,” he told The Times of India.
“I expect the South African bowlers to use the short ball against him. But if he survives those initial moments and gets his eye in, then Pandya could be lethal,” he added.
Klusener, who himself was a pace bowling all-rounder, went on to say that India’s chances in South Africa depend a lot on how their skipper Virat Kohli fares.
“If India aims to win this series then Kohli will have to score. He would be tested, and it gives our bowlers a chance to know how good they are when they bowl to one of the best batters in the world currently,” he said.
The three-match series is one of the most awaited series in recent times and has been billed to be an absolute blockbuster with world number two South Africa hosting world number one India.
When Klusener was asked about his favourite to win the series, he said:
“Both India and South Africa have full strength sides to choose from. There is little to separate the two teams, but I reckon South Africa will enjoy a slight edge in the pace bowling department as the likes of Dale Steyn, Morne Morkel, Kagiso Rabada and Vernon Philander are well-versed with the conditions. On the other hand, India have a well-rounded attack with terrific spin bowling options such as R Ashwin and Ravindra Jadeja to choose from.”
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