“I don’t know”: Hardik Pandya unsure of India making changes to Playing 11 in 3rd T20I vs New Zealand at McLean Park

The second New Zealand-India T20I in Mount Maunganui tonight was only the ninth instance of Hardik Pandya not bowling a single over (when his team bowled) in his 80-match career thus far. First such instance with him as captain, most of the others have come when Pandya used to play as a specialist batter.

Pandya’s ploy of not introducing himself into the attack resulted in part-time spinner Deepak Hooda picking career-best bowling figures of 2.5-0-10-4 in a 65-run Indian victory. With regular India captain Rohit Sharma guilty of not trying out non-specialist bowling options in the recent past, Pandya sacrificing his own spell was quite pleasing to see.

“The conditions were very wet. So, credit to the bowlers. I have bowled a lot. Going forward, I want to see more bowling options. Not always that this will work but I want more batters to chip in with the ball,” Pandya told Spark Sport during the post-match presentation ceremony.

Important to start with a win 🇮🇳 Well done to the entire team! That was special @surya_14kumar 👌🤙 pic.twitter.com/9EUgiZJ4wp

— hardik pandya (@hardikpandya7) November 20, 2022

Hardik Pandya unsure of India making changes to Playing 11 in 3rd T20I vs New Zealand at McLean Park

Much like his counterpart Kane Williamson and the global cricketing fraternity, Pandya also made it a point to laud batter Suryakumar Yadav for scoring a match-winning second T20I century at the Bay Oval. Yadav, 32, batting at a strike rate of 217.64 on a surface where all other batters struggled collectively was indeed the difference between New Zealand and India on Sunday.

Having reached New Zealand with a squad bereft of multiple senior players, India making six changes to their last Playing XI wasn’t surprising by any means. That being said, the likes of Sanju Samson and Umran Malik not getting a game had it in it to let down plentiful Indian fans back home.

With only one more match left in the series, fans of Samson and Malik would be hoping for them to get a chance not just for the sake of fandom but what this pair can add to the Indian team in this format. Pandya, however, was unsure of whether India will tinker with a winning combination or not.

The 29-year old player was of the opinion that the team management will decide the same after reaching the McLean Park on Tuesday. “I don’t know. We’ll see the wicket. We’ll ask the bowlers if they need rest. We’ll see at the ground. I’d like to give everyone in the squad a chance but it’s just one more game. So, it’s a bit tough,” Pandya added.

About the author

Dixit Bhargav

Born and brought up in Pathankot, Dixit Bhargav is an engineering and sports management graduate who works as a Cricket Editor at The SportsRush. Having written more than 10,000 articles across more than five years at TSR, his first cricketing memory dates back to 2002 when former India captain Sourav Ganguly had waved his jersey at the historic Lord’s balcony. What followed for an 8-year-old was an instant adulation for both Ganguly and the sport. The optimist in him is waiting for the day when Punjab Kings will win their maiden Indian Premier League title. When not watching cricket, he is mostly found in a cinema hall watching a Punjabi movie.

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