Former India head coach Ravi Shastri applauded Hardik Pandya on Tuesday, declaring him the finest player in T20 cricket when playing at full fitness.

Speaking during coverage of India’s ongoing ODI series against New Zealand for Sony Sports Network, Shastri said, “Wherever he goes, if he’s fully fit, he’s the best in the business, you know, in T20 cricket, and a genuine match-winner. And, you know, he might just be charged up – he’s not played cricket for a while. He might just be charged up to come out there and, you know, show what he’s capable of.”

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Former New Zealand captain Ross Taylor also praised Hardik Pandya’s value, stating that top-tier all-rounders remain rare in the modern game.

“I mean, you’ve got world-class all-rounders, there’s only a diamond dozen of them,” Taylor said. “And when you’ve got a player of his ability, who is as good with the bat and the ball, the balance of your team just improves. So you can either have an extra batter or an extra bowler and, you know, we’re seeing all these high-scoring matches. Having bowlers that you can obviously take early wickets, but also bowl depth just to, I mean, just to try and keep the score under 250 sometimes. It’s unbelievable, but he’s still a world-class player with a lot of cricket left in him. I think both teams will benefit if that is the case, as, you know, it is only a rumor at this stage, but we have to wait and see.”