New Zealand skipper Kane Williamson has termed India’s stand-in skipper, Hardik Pandya as ‘one of the most sought-after match-winners’ as he will be leading the men in blue in the upcoming three-match T20I series starting Friday, November 18. Meanwhile, Williamson has also said that Hardik has the potential to lead India in the shortest format as the Men in Blue start afresh after their semifinal exit from the recently-concluded T20 World Cup in Australia.
During a chat with the reporters ahead of the series, Kane Williamson said, “Hardik obviously is a superstar of the game. I played against him on a number of occasions. He is one of the most sought-after match-winners. And the fact that he is an all-rounder, his bowling going really well and can hit the ball like he does. He is a special cricketer.”
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He further added, “As for his leadership skill goes, I haven’t played with him so I don’t exactly know, but he has had a lot of success in IPL. And with the leadership within India, they have got a number of great and experienced players. So their leadership and guidance of that under Rohit Sharma and the likes of Virat Kohli will be very helpful.”
Hardik Pandya will be leading Team India as the veteran cricketer including the likes of regular skipper Rohit Sharma, and batting stalwart, Virat Kohli has been rested for this tour. Many experts have also come in support of Hardik to be the frontrunner to lead India in T20I cricket and lead the Men in Blue in the 2024 edition of the T20 World Cup that is scheduled to be played in the Caribbean and the USA.
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Apart from captaincy, Hardik Pandya will also be looking forward to proving a point with his wicket-taking abilities and power-hitting techniques in the middle order during the upcoming series. He was one of India’s saviors with the bat in the T20 World Cup semis against England last week. His played a fiery knock of 33-ball 63 powered India to a respectable total of 168/6.
