Former Indian cricketer Ambati Rayudu expressed his disappointment with Hardik Pandya for lacking confidence in Dhruv Jurel during the third T20I against England. Although Pandya emerged as India's top scorer in the 172-run chase, he was unable to lead the team to victory in Rajkot. He accumulated 40 runs from 35 balls, which included two sixes and a four. The power-hitter appeared to struggle initially, playing several dot balls during the middle overs, which ultimately proved detrimental. Nevertheless, he managed to accelerate his scoring in the final overs before being dismissed in the penultimate over.

Pandya entered the match at a challenging moment, following the early loss of India's explosive top order. A significant moment occurred when Adil Rashid dismissed the in-form Tilak Varma for 18 runs in the eighth over.

This situation placed the responsibility on Hardik Pandya to stabilize the innings, and he attempted to do so by scoring 40 runs off 35 balls.

Rayudu did not criticize Hardik's strike rate of 114.29 but suggested that he should have demonstrated greater trust in Jurel's abilities. On the final ball of the 18th over, Jurel played a shot to square leg, but Hardik opted not to take a single to retain the strike for the next over. This decision backfired, as the star all-rounder was dismissed on the first ball of the penultimate over.

"It was a commendable performance considering the challenging batting conditions and the loss of wickets at the other end. He managed his innings effectively. However, when it came time to finish the match, he could have placed a bit more faith in Dhruv Jurel," he remarked.

‘If he had shown a little more confidence in Dhruv Jurel’

India experienced a series of wickets falling at consistent intervals, with Washington Sundar (6), Axar Patel (15), and Jurel (2) unable to make significant contributions.

Rayudu indicated that had Hardik displayed greater confidence in Jurel's capabilities, the match could have been considerably more competitive, as India struggled to demonstrate resilience in the final overs, ultimately losing by 26 runs.

"Even if 25 runs had been needed in the last over, Hardik possesses the skill to achieve that. Therefore, I believe that if he had exhibited a bit more trust in Dhruv Jurel, the outcome might have been different. Nonetheless, how he managed his innings was quite encouraging," Rayudu remarked.

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