IPL 2023: “He Is Unarguably The Most Important Player For India In World Cup 2023” – Dinesh Karthik On Hardik Pandya

Dinesh Karthik, an Indian experienced wicket-keeper, feels all-rounder Hardik Pandya would be an important player for India in the 2023 ODI World Cup. Pandya has been in phenomenal form after returning from injury, scoring many crucial runs for India in limited-overs cricket.

Karthik further stated that Pandya’s bowling makes him an even more valuable asset by providing the team with an extra bowling option.

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India’s batting and bowling performances have come under scrutiny after the loss. The top order had trouble getting going, and the batting lineup as a whole struggled in the series. The squad failed to post a significant total in any of the matches, so the middle order was also unable to contend. The bowling attack failed miserably as well, with the pacers failing to make an impact. On the other hand, the spinners were able to contain the Australian batsmen but were unable to consistently take wickets.

One thing going for India in the three-match series was Hardik Pandya, who also led the team in the opening ODI. The all-rounder led the team because the normal captain, Rohit Sharma, was unable to play in the first ODI. Hardik received accolades for his tenacious leadership in the opening ODI, during which he took a wicket and amassed 25 runs off of 31 balls. He lost his composure in the second ODI and was dismissed for one off three balls.

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“Hardik Pandya brings two skills to the floor” – Dinesh Karthik

During the recently finished ODI series, in which Pandya picked up a three-wicket haul in the final game, India wicketkeeper-batsman Dinesh Karthik praised the contribution of T20 skipper and ODI vice-captain Hardik Pandya to the team.

“Hardik Pandya is unarguably the most important player in the lineup. A, because he brings two skills to the floor and the fact that he brings two tough skills to the floor. Medium pacer and batting all-rounder is something that is very, very hard to get. Yes, there are 2-3 players who are probably spinning all-rounders, but fast bowling all-rounders are very hard to get,”  Dinesh Karthik said.

“Hardik Pandya bats really well through the middle and obviously when it comes to bowling, he seems to find a way to chip in and get wickets. What makes him really hard to play is his natural link because the way he bowls, you always feel he is going to keep short of a length,”Dinesh Karthik in his analysis of his role on Cricbuzz.

“But the moment he starts bowling fuller, the batsman’s weight is on the back foot, looking for the short ball a lot more, and hence you always tend to be slightly slower. It was a well-thought-out dismissal of Mitchell Marsh, he changed the pace well, got Travis Head to play a pull shot, and dropped in deep square. But again got him playing a cut shot,” Dinesh Karthik said.

“Hardik Pandya is bowling well. He is definitely a very important cog in the wheel. He is one of those players that literally make up the outlook of the team, the way the team is constructed depends on where Hardik Pandya is. Suddenly if you remove him from the whole team and you feel that are we going a batter more or are we going a batter less? It becomes a massive question mark. For Team India, the key player is Hardik Pandya and if he is in form, he brings a lot to the table,” Dinesh Karthik further added.