Hardik Pandya smashed a sparkling unbeaten 28-ball 59 to lift India to 175 for six against South Africa on Tuesday. Returning to the Indian team after recovering from quadricep injury, Pandya smashed six fours and four maximums to provide the much-needed impetus in the fag end of the innings.
The 32-year-old settled the nerves, with his two sixes, getting the run-rate up. He continued his aggressive ways, taking on Anrich Nortje who bowled with a lot of venom. On a pitch where India's top order struggled to score at a fair clip, Hardik looked in superlative ease in Cuttack.
Back on the field, Pandya took little time to settle in during the IND vs SA 1st t20I in Cuttack. Facing Keshav Maharaj, Hardik smashed two monstrous sixes of the left-arm spinner. The first of those was a stunning no look effort, effectively communicating his prowess and form.
It was how his rest of the inning panned out. Pandya regularly found gaps to keep the scoreboard ticking over. It was his 6th T20I century, coming off just 25 balls.
Virat Kohli prep behind Hardik success?
Ahead of the IND vs SA 1st T20I, Hardik had taken a page out of Virat Kohli's book. The former India captain had arrived early in Ranchi to get a feel of the conditions. The results were there to see with Kohli winning the player of the series award.
The early preparation worked wonders for Hardik as well, with the all-rounder clearly the best batsman on the day. The 32-year-old looked comfortable with the pace and bounce on offer, even advancing to the likes of Anrich Nortje.
