Find out more about India’s position in the Asia Cup 2022 points table here.
Pandya smashed an unbeaten 33 of just 17 balls to help India defeat Pakistan by five wickets in their Asia Cup 2022 opener on Sunday (August 28). The seam-bowling all-rounder earlier picked up three wickets during Pakistan’s innings as the Men in Blue bowled out their arch-rivals for 147 runs.
During an interaction on the Sports 18 show ‘Sports Over the Top’, Manjrekar was asked about an aspect of Hardik Pandya’s demeanor that strikes him the most these days. He responded:
Reflecting on Pandya’s knock in the game against Pakistan, Manjrekar highlighted that the Baroda all-rounder was suddenly confronted by a spin bowler in the final over. The former India batter explained:
Mohammad Nawaz had an over left when Pandya came to the crease in the 15th over of the Indian innings. Babar Azam opted to bowl out his pacers before bringing the left-arm spinner back into the attack only in the final over.
“He had four balls to get those runs” - Sanjay Manjrekar on Hardik Pandya delivering under pressure
Manjrekar was particularly appreciative of Pandya for holding his nerve under immense pressure. He elaborated:
Manjrekar concluded by pointing out the Gujarat Titans skipper’s extreme confidence in his abilities. The cricketer-turned-analyst observed:
India required six runs off four deliveries when Dinesh Karthik gave Hardik Pandya the strike in the final over bowled by Nawaz. Although the big-hitter could not get a run on the third ball of the over, he smashed the fourth delivery for a six to take the defending Asia Cup champions across the line.
36 votes
