Monday, August 29, 2022

Watch: Hardik Pandya recalls injury-forced exit in 2018 Asia Cup, talks about ‘sense of achievement’ four years later

Hardik Pandya’s all-round show helped Team India get their Asia Cup victory off to a victorious start with a five-wicket win over Pakistan in Dubai on Sunday.

Not only did it help the Men in Blue pull one back against their arch-rivals after getting thrashed by the same team at the same venue in the T20 World Cup last year, it was also a comeback of sorts for Pandya, who suffered an ignominious injury-forced exit from the 2018 Asia Cup during a match against Pakistan, also in Dubai.

Read: Nonchalant Hardik Pandya shines brightest amid a galaxy of stars

Pandya collected three crucial wickets while giving away just 25 runs to help restrict Babar Azam’s team to under 150. He later starred with the bat, coming in at a time when India had lost their fourth wicket and the game could have gone either way. In the end, Pandya took the game deep, taking the odd risk along the way, and finished off in style in a calm and composed manner to remind everyone of his match-finishing credentials.

In a chat with Ravindra Jadeja, with whom he shared a crucial 52-run stand for the fifth wicket that got the Indians within touching distance of the target, Pandya reminisced the injury that he had suffered at the same venue four years ago and how his performance on Sunday was a redemption of sorts.

“I remembered everything. I was being taken off the field in a stretcher, it was the very same dressing room. I feel a sense of achievement, to look back at everything that has happened and then come out and perform the way I did today. Journey has been a beautiful one,” Pandya told fellow all-rounder Jadeja in a chat shared by the BCCI on their social media accounts.

Pandya also spoke about facing the last over, which was bowled by left-arm spinner Mohammad Nawaz with India needing seven to win off six balls. Jadeja was clean bowled off the very first delivery, but new batter Dinesh Karthik brought Pandya back on strike right away with a single off his very first ball. Pandya then clobbered a flat delivery from Nawaz over long on to finish the game with two balls to spare, remaining unbeaten on 33 off 17 balls.

“Seven runs didn’t appear too big to me, given the final over was being bowled by a left-arm spinner. Plus I didn’t really care about the five fielders (being inside the circle). Even if they had 10 fielders manning the boundary, I’d still have whacked the ball,” Pandya told Jadeja.

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