All-rounder Hardik Pandya is considered one of the most stylish players in the history of cricket. The cultivation of a similar aura was seen when he took the wicket of Pakistani opener Sahibzada Farhan.
Arch-rivals Pakistan invited India to bat first, and Ishan Kishan made important contributions for India with the bat. Captain Suryakumar Yadav and Shivam Dubey conducted well in the middle phase and Rinku Singh provided a strong end to the Indian innings.
However, India’s key contributor against Pakistan, Hardik Pandya, failed to produce a stellar performance with the bat as he was out on the very first ball, attempting to dismiss Sam Ayub with a big hit over long off. He was caught well away from the boundary line, as the pitch offered slow pace and the boundaries were wide enough to be cleared.
Hardik Pandya’s ‘aura-farming’ video goes viral!
Hardik Pandya may have missed his chance with the bat, but he performed excellently handling the new ball alongside veteran fast bowler Jasprit Bumrah. Pandya dismissed Pakistan’s opener for a duck in the very first over of the game.
Pandya ran in and pulled his length back and delivered it around the off-stump line. Farhan, who was under a lot of pressure, was trying to pull it over the mid-wicket region after playing three dot balls in the innings. The ball was top-edged and the leading edge was caught by the safe hands of Rinku Singh at mid-on.
What caught the internet’s attention was that Pandya saw the ball top-edge but did not glance at it to check the completion of the catch, and instead continued walking onto the pitch with his chest held wide with pride. Eventually he celebrated his wicket as Ishan Kishan ran towards him.
Sahibzada Farhan exposed after “all talk and no show” in Indian sports
Sahibzada Farhan was all words ahead of the clash with India. He was Pakistan’s best man in the performance against the United States and also scored two half-centuries against India in the Asia Cup. Farhan had also warned the Indian team and said that Pakistan would play with the same mentality as it had played in the previous matches.
However, the opening batsman has been proven to be an “all talk and no show” candidate, much like the reputation of many Pakistanis against India. After giving so many promises and warnings, Farhan was out for a duck on four balls, just like India’s Abhishek Sharma.
Indian bowlers shined
India started with Hardik Pandya and Jasprit Bumrah in the powerplay and made them bowl four overs. Hardik took a wicket in his first over, which ended in a maiden over. Jasprit Bumrah was unlucky as he was hit by a flurry of sixes and fours in his first over; However, he bowled them out with some brilliant deliveries.
Bumrah bowled a toe-crusher to dismiss Sam Ayub and then bowled a slower ball to send back the Pakistani captain. Later Hardik ended the innings by dismissing Usman Tariq. Apart from Hardik Pandya and Bumrah, Axar Patel and Varun Chakraborty took two wickets each.
Part-time bowlers Tilak Verma and Kuldeep Yadav took one wicket each. Axar’s wickets were the most important in the game, which included the wickets of Babar Azam and Usman Khan.
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