Hardik Pandya has regained his batting form and played a sensational knock against Bangladesh in the warm-up match of T20 World Cup. Pandya has been under the scanners in recent times after a flop IPL 2024 both as a batter and a captain, but it seems that now he is relieved from the captaincy charge in the Indian team, he looks more comfortable in the middle and played with a lot of freedom.

The Indian vice-captain silenced his critics with an unbeaten 40-run knock to give a finishing touch to the innings. During his 23-ball stay, Hardik slammed four sixes and two fours. The flamboyant all-rounder smashed Tanvir Islam for a hat-trick of sixes to show why he is still a vital cog in the wheel for the Indian team when it comes to white-ball cricket. Out of the three finishers in the line-up, only Pandya was the one who stood tall for the side as Shivam Dube (14) and Ravindra Jadeja (4*) looked sluggish in the middle.

Former India pacer Laxmipathy Balaji lavished praise on Pandy and said that his form allows flexibility in the batting order.

“It’s very important. Hardik plays a very important role when it comes to the Indian team progressing to the knockout stage. If he comes good, there will be so much balance in the side, both with the bat and ball. Especially with the bat down the order, he will give you flexibility to choose your batters upfront,” Balaji told Star Sports.

However, Pandya managed to reclaim his bowling form in the second half of IPL 2024 as he claimed 11 wickets in 14 matches. He also picked a wicket against Bangladesh in the warm-up clash.

The Indian team management might be forced to play Hardik as their fifth bowling option to accommodate Shivam Dube in the playing XI.

Balaji pointed out the all-round ability of Pandya which makes him a crucial asset for the Indian team in the mega ICC event.

“At the same time, he may get a go with the new ball also in the powerplay and more likely in the death overs. Hardik’s form is very crucial and he showed today that he is capable of hitting sixes. It was great to see him settling in New York,” Balaji added.

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