India all-rounder Hardik Pandya stated on Thursday that his training before any big tournament is similar to military-style training, including hard physical exercises and self-discipline to help him give his best for the nation.
In the T20 World Cup in New Delhi, Pandya led India to a decisive victory over Namibia with an all-around performance.
“Body has been fantastic, it takes a lot of hard work which I cherish. Playing for the country is the No. 1 priority. I do an army-like camp a month before the tournament,” PTI quoted Pandya, who won Player of the Match for his overall performance, as saying.
He took two wickets and scored a scorching 52 off 28 balls, giving the batting a boost in the middle overs and helping India win by a commanding 93 runs.
Pandya attributed his success to his intense pre-World Cup training, stating that he always takes pride in his batting and that it’s like “adding sugar to the cake” when it really takes off.
“Just enjoying the sport, had a good couple of months to prepare. Touchwood, everything is going well. I’ve always taken pride as a batter. When it comes off, it adds more sugar to the cake,” said Pandya.
India has a well-rounded side with plenty of alternatives in every department, he continued.
“We have a lot of options, pacers and spin covered. Varun (Chakravarthy), Axar (Patel) and Kuldeep (Yadav) too. They’ve done a tremendous job.”
However, he stated that he would want to see flatter pitches that are more conducive to batting and improve stroke-making.
“Two back-to-back pitches haven’t been batting-friendly, wicket was holding a bit today. You just adapt and let your skill-set work. We’d like a little more flatter wickets,” he opined.
The pitch was a little difficult to bat on, according to India captain Suryakumar Yadav, but openers Ishan Kishan and Sanju Samson adjusted remarkably well.
“Pretty good game, tough pitch to bat on. Ishan, Samson made it look easier. Ball was stopping a bit, but not taking credit away from Namibia’s bowlers. After 6-7 overs, we thought we might go over 240 but cricket is a leveller.
“We had a great finish. Big plus (to) see Bumrah bowl all four (overs). Varun bowls well in partnership with Axar. Hardik bowls wherever needed and gives a big boost with bat. Every game is important, we started a bit scratchy but we are on the road,” he added.
Gerhard Erasmus, the captain of Namibia, expressed his belief that the dew effect would put India at a disadvantage when bowling second, but Varun’s performance totally dispelled that worry.
“After the Powerplay, we thought dew might make bowling tough and we had a chance. but that spell from Varun broke the back of our chase. (JJ) Smit’s spell was good, that’s the kind of specialisation we want.
“We aren’t playing at our 100 percent. We have a lot of firepower but aren’t laying a foundation. Quality of India’s bowling showed, overs 6-10 broke the back,” said Erasmus.
