Hardik Pandya dynamic performance once again proved instrumental as India secured a crucial 50-run victory over Bangladesh in the Super 8s of the T20 World Cup. The win all but guarantees the ‘Men in Blue’ a spot in the semi-finals. Pandya, who scored the first half-century by an Indian No. 6 in a T20 World Cup game, also contributed with the ball, taking a wicket. So far, Pandya has amassed 89 runs in three innings with a strike rate of 141, alongside eight wickets.
“I mentioned in the last game as well, his batting well puts us in a good stead. We want to finish well and Hardik being Hardik we know what he is capable of,” said skipper Rohit Sharma during the post-match presentation ceremony.
Rohit added, highlighting Pandya’s pivotal role in the team’s strategy “He is a very important player for us. If he can keep doing that, it will put us in good positions,”.
On the day, other Indian batters also stepped up with significant contributions. Quickfire 30s from Virat Kohli (37), Rishabh Pant (36), and Shivam Dube (34) set the stage, while Rohit himself added a brisk 23 off 11 balls.
Rohit commented, emphasizing the team’s adaptability and intent “I have been talking about this for a long time now. It’s about going there and putting that into work. Considering everything we played really well, adapted to the conditions,”.
“All eight batters need to play their role, whatever it is. We saw one guy get 50 and we got 197. In T20, I don’t believe we need to get fifties and hundreds, what matters is the pressure you put on the bowlers,” he explained, praising the collective effort and strategic execution.
Rohit also noted the influence of the breeze in the Caribbean islands, adding, “There’s a little bit of wind factor here, overall we are very smart, overall we were good with bat and ball.”
Bangladesh skipper Najmul Hossain Shanto acknowledged his team’s shortcomings, stating, “We were thinking about 160-170 when we put them into bat, but they batted well so credit to them.” He admitted the team lacked the necessary intent, saying, “We did not show as much intent as we needed with the bat. When we were chasing 190, we needed to show more intent, especially in the first six (overs).”
India’s victory against Bangladesh underscores the team’s depth and the pivotal role of players like Hardik Pandya in their T20 World Cup campaign.