Rohit Sharma’s Team India enlightened the fans by defeating arch-rivals Pakistan in their campaign opener at Asia Cup 2022 on Sunday in Dubai. The Men in Blue exhibited an all-round show to outclass the neighbours, seeking revenge for last year’s humiliation in the T20 World Cup.
Bhuvneshwar Kumar-led Indian pace attack ran through the Pakistan batting line-up, picking up all 10 wickets to bundle them for 147. The target seemed easy but practically, it turned out to be tricky as India lost 5 wickets while chasing it down. Debutant Naseem Shah and spinner Mohammad Nawaz did excellent work to give those early jolts to India but in the end, it was all-rounder Hardik Pandya who took India home single-handedly.
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Pandya shifted gear in the penultimate over and clobbered 3 three boundaries off Haris Rauf, adding 19 runs to the board. India needed 7 runs off the last six deliveries and when the victory seemed closer, Nawaz knocked over Jadeja off the very first ball of the final over.
Dinesh Karthik walked out next and with the form he has been in lately, the fans were assured that the veteran stumper will take India through. But he took a quick single off a quicker delivery down the leg side, putting a well-set Hardik on strike. After conceding a dot ball, Nawaz was hit over long-on for a six by a cool-headed Pandya. India won the game by 5 runs and celebrations began in the dressing room.
— Guess Karo (@KuchNahiUkhada) August 29, 2022
The year 2022 has witnessed a meteoric rise in Hardik Pandya’s career which was troubled by a back injury. It was during the last Asia Cup, in 2018, that he had to be stretchered out of the field in a game against Pakistan. He had bowled 4.5 overs for 24 runs until the point he clutched his back during his follow-through in the 18th over of the Pakistan innings before lying motionless.
The next three years were forgettable as the pain restricted him from bowling full throttle. Even if he wasn’t bowling, the discomfort was evident on his face. But things took a turn after he plugged himself off completely. After the T20 World Cup 2021, he spent around 4 months at the National Cricket Academy (NCA) in Bengaluru and underwent rehabilitation.
He returned to IPL 2022 in a completely different avatar where he was not only just scoring runs but also bowling a complete spell and picking up wickets. He has been on a terrific run since then and just showed a glimpse of his red-hot form on Sunday against Pakistan.
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