India all-rounder Hardik Pandya held his nerve on Sunday evening as he guided Team India to a five-wicket win against arch-rivals Pakistan in their Asia Cup 2022 opener in Dubai. The Baroda cricketer was awarded the Player of the Match award for his all-round performance as he scalped three wickets and remained unbeaten on 33 off 17 deliveries, finishing the game with a last-over six.
Hardik
was at his best against Pakistan as he showcased incredible finishing abilities
by not only keeping the required run rate under check but also helping India get across the line. Post-match, Hardik credited former Indian skipper MS Dhoni for
teaching him the ability to stay calm in such crucial situations and spoke at
length about his tactics during his run chase against Pakistan.
While Hardik
was speaking about MS Dhoni’s ability to remain calm and how it has influenced his
game and helped him to understand the nitty-gritty of the game, former Indian
cricketer Gautam Gambhir, who has had his differences with MS Dhoni in the past, was also present.
Notably, Hardik joined presenter Jatin Sapru and Gautam Gambhir in the post-match show on Star Sports where the all-rounder was asked about the influence of MS Dhoni on him. Ever since the incident, the video of the same has gone viral on social media. A couple of twitter users were quick to notice Gambhir’s reaction while Hardik was speaking highly of Dhoni.
Hardik Pandya about @msdhoni 's influence on him ! pic.twitter.com/LQoC5ZYH4c
— 🎰 (@StanMSD) August 29, 2022
Hardik Pandya credits @MSDhoni openly in front of Gautam Gambhir 😅❤️#AsiaCup2022 #INDvPAK
— HemaPriya07 (@attitudegirl___) August 29, 2022
pic.twitter.com/Kx2G2HTB6m
Adding
further, the cricketer admitted that he tried to keep things simple and has learned a lot from every cricketer he played with. "I believe in the fact
one must remain calm and assess the situation before taking any decision. So, I
applied the same method during the game and was constantly assessing the game
plan to shift gears accordingly," Hardik concluded.
Apart from Hardik, Ravindra Jadeja's 35 off 29 and Bhuvneshwar Kumar's four wickets were noteworthy performances from Men in Blue. Team India will next lock horns with Hong Kong on August 31 in their final league stage game.