India’s 2023 ODI World Cup campaign will get underway in Chennai against Australia. Aakash Chopra, a former cricketer for India, predicted that star all-rounder Hardik Pandya will be key to India’s success in the major ICC competition in his pregame remarks. Chopra said that the squad now lacks a batting all-rounder, highlighting Pandya’s significance in the lineup.
Jadeja’s recent batting has been uneven, and Pandya is the only player in the top six who can bowl and bat in testing conditions. The all-rounder’s absence from the ODI match against Australia and the postponement of the warm-up matches worried Chopra, though.
There may be a possibility. In his debut game in Chennai, Hardik Pandya might not be at his best: Chopra
Aakash Chopra, who hosts JioCinema’s daily sports program “#AAKASHVANI,” questioned whether India depends too much on Hardik Pandya and his role in the team. “I have some concerns about India’s reliance on Hardik Pandya. Nobody else in the team bowls in the top six like him; he is the only player of that caliber. Although he can bat at No. 7, Ravindra Jadeja’s recent batting performance hasn’t been fantastic.
Shardul Thakur is not a batting all-rounder, unable to bat at No. 6, making Pandya the only one in the team. As a result, I consider Hardik Pandya to be essential to team India’s success at the World Cup. He missed the last three One-Day Internationals against Australia and the warm-up games, which is another reason I worry about this. He hasn’t played much cricket; he took a few wickets in the Asia Cup final, but he couldn’t bat, and his performances in the remaining two matches against Pakistan weren’t all that noteworthy. Therefore, there’s a risk he won’t play his best in Chennai’s inaugural game.