IND vs SA: Ben Stokes More Complete Cricketer Than Hardik Pandya - Lance Klusener

Lance Klusener, Zimbabwe’s current batting coach, has established himself as one of the feared ball-strikers in one-day international cricket. He holds the best figures by a South African on his Test debut 8 for 64 against India in 1996. His batting exploits in the 1999 ODI World Cup often overshadow the fact that he took 19 wickets in the tournament.

The southpaw shared his opinion about Hardik Pandya’s progress as an all-rounder, his thoughts on ongoing India vs South Africa T20I series and the upcoming T20 World Cup and more.

Hardik Pandya’s Batting Right Up With Best In The World – Lance Klusener

Lance Klusener said that Hardik Pandya’s batting is right up there with the best in the world. The questions around Pandya are not too much on his batting, but about his bowling.

“It’s a good question. I think the questions around Pandya are not too much on his batting. It is about his bowling. Can he consistently bowl his full quota in all forms of the game? His batting is right up there with the best in the world.”

Ben Stokes More Complete Cricketer Than Hardik Pandya – Lance Klusener

Indian all-rounder Hardik Pandya has made huge strides in the last two three years, but Lance Klusener feels he is still not the full product. He said that Stokes is a bit more complete than a guy like Pandya, but he is learning all the time.

“I think Stokes is a little bit more complete than a guy like Pandya. But he’s learning all the time. In the last two-three years, the strides that Pandya has taken in international cricket are awesome. I don’t think he’s quite the finished product yet. The sooner he gets to that (stage) where he’s completing all his overs all the time, I think we can definitely put him in the same bracket as all great all-rounders. He is up there but not quite at the top now.”

Lance Klusener stated that Rohit Sharma is using the fielding restrictions and it’s a bit of a risk if he really wanted to play differently. He added that there is probably someone else who can fill that role and it is important that Rohit does something other than what he is doing.

“He is taking advantage of whatever the fielding restrictions are. If he really has been asked to play differently, it is a bit of a gamble. I think Rohit has been doing fantastically well anyway… He does not need to chase the game. Maybe there’s somebody else who can play that role. Rohit is too valuable to be doing anything differently from what he has been doing over the last so many years.”

Australians Are Favourites In Their Home – Lance Klusener

South African all-rounder feels that Australia are the favourites in their home conditions, with South Africa, India, Pakistan, New Zealand, and England right up there.

“Australia in their backyard are got to be the favourites. And then there are I guess about five teams (who can pose a challenge). South Africa, India, Pakistan, New Zealand and England. If they find good performances and consistency over those three weeks then they are right up there. But it’s a tough one to call. I think these six teams will have equal chances.”