India all-rounder Hardik Pandya made a sensational comeback in international cricket after his sublime IPL form in 2022 where he would went onto lead Gujarat Titans to victory over Rajasthan Royals in the final. Today, he is perhaps the most crucial member for the T20 World Cup-bound Indian team who would be leaving for Australia on October 5.
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Meanwhile, Pandya’s back issue had kept him out of international cricket for a long time. Fans must have forgotten that he before 2018—when his back injury occurred at the Asia Cup, was already a regular feature in the Indian team playing the 2017 Champions Trophy final against Pakistan where he almost threatened to pull off the game for India after a bad start.
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Pandya was batting on 76 off 43 deliveries when a bit of miscommunication with partner Ravindra Jadeja led to the former’s runout. As he walked off, the frustration was visible on his face. A livid cricketer abusing himself. It must be noted here that he has slammed three consecutive sixes in his innings before his departure.
“He felt he could have won us that day," R Sridhar, former fielding coach who was in the dressing room revealed on cricket.com.
“The way he was batting, he was in his zone, as they call it. And he thought him and Jadeja could have won us the game. Unfortunately, not to be. But again, that put Hardik on the world map, didn’t it," Sridhar further said.
Skipper Virat Kohli won the toss and decided to bowl first but the decision backfired as Pakistan’s opening batters Azhar Ali (59 runs off 71 balls) and Fakhar Zaman (114 off 106 balls) put up a partnership of 128 runs. Azhar departed in the 23rd over of the match due to a miscommunication between the batters. Fakhar remained at the crease and continued his onslaught. The southpaw eventually scored a century in the match.
With a big target to chase, the Virat Kohli-led side needed a solid start but Mohammad Amir single-handedly destroyed the Indian batting lineup. India lost their first five wickets scoring just 54 runs. All-rounder Hardik Pandya (76 runs off 43 balls) put up a valiant effort to take his side close to victory but eventually his heroics proved to be insufficient as they were bundled out for 158 runs in 30.3 overs.
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