Sunil Gavaskar names two players who can replace Hardik Pandya
India ticked all the boxes so far in the four-white ball games against Sri Lanka, but one aspect which they will feel a touch worried about is the form of Hardik Pandya with the bat. The all-rounder is having a mediocre tour with the bat as he scored 19 and 0 in the two ODIs and got out for 10 runs in the first T20I against the Island nation.
The 27-year-old seemed to have gone on a shell as there were no lusty blows seen from the blade of the batter. With the ball in hand too, Pandya struggled to find any rhythm as he picked just two wickets in the preceding ODI series. Recently several reports surfaced that how the all-rounder is keen on returning to the bowling, but it seems Pandya is yet to hit the right notes.
With the ICC T20 World Cup all set to start in October, India will be hoping for Pandya to find his mojo back, as he can be dangerous with the bat as a finisher. Speaking about the lack of runs from the batter, former Indian opener Sunil Gavaskar has a rather refreshing take on the matter and, he feels two players if they can be groomed well, can be backup options for India in place of Pandya.
Sunil Gavaskar names his choices for the all-rounder position
“Of course, there is a backup. You recently saw Deepak Chahar; he proved that he can be an all-rounder. You did not give Bhuvneshwar Kumar that opportunity. Two-three years ago, when India played in Sri Lanka, then he along with Dhoni, had won India a match. The scenario in that match was similar to the second ODI. They had lost 7-8 wickets and, Bhuvneshwar and Dhoni had won that match for India,” Gavaskar said on Sports Tak.
Deepak Chahar proved he can be more than useful with the bat in hand with a match-winning unbeaten 69 in the second ODI. Bhuvneshwar Kumar looked calm and composed while scoring 19 runs in the same game, the reason why Gavaskar feels these two players have the potential to be all-rounders if managed well.
The 71-year-old concluded by saying that these two players should be given more opportunities as all-rounders in near future.
