"Will Bring Back Interest In ODIs": Ex-India Star's Massive Take On Hardik Pandya's Captaincy
Hardik Pandya led India for time in an ODI during a match against Australia in Mumbai on Friday. The hosts won the game by 5 wickets.
With the advent of T20 cricket, longer-format games have been fighting hard for their survival. While the Test cricket has seen a revival of late, it is the ODI format that finds itself in danger. Amid the ongoing discussions about the future of the 50-over format, former India cricketer Ajay Jadeja feels that aggresive style of captaincy that Hardik Pandya does would bring the interest of the fans back in the format. Notably, Hardik led India for time in an ODI during a match against Australia in Mumbai on Friday. The hosts won the game by 5 wickets.
"Whenever you watch Hardik Pandya play, he plays in a different way. Not just playing, watch him walking in the afternoon, he has a different vibe. He is always aggressive, so when you look at the playing XI, who were the bowlers, Shami, Siraj, be it a good or bad day for him, that's different. Then he has kept Kuldeep, then he himself bowls aggressively. Jadeja is a defensive bowler but is not really defensive. His mindset is aggressive so the captaincy doesn't have a drag in games. Everyone has their own way, some are successful, some are not," said Ajay Jadeja on Cricbuzz.
"If you look at Kane Williamson, if he would have been far that day in the run out, then people would have said, why did they take it so close. That's his style of playing. Similarly, MS Dhoni had a style, so this is Hardik Pandya's style. This is attacking style, it won't bore you. It will bring back your interest in ODI cricket", he added.
Hardik won't be the captain of the Indian team in the second ODI as regular skipper Rohit Sharma will return in the role. He had missed the first game due to family commitments.
India Cricket Team
Australia Cricket Team
Hardik Pandya