Hardik Pandya reveals he was picked in the T20 World Cup 2021 squad as a batter and not an all-rounder

The fitness of star all-rounder Hardik Pandya has been a primary issue of concern for Indian cricket over the last few months. It proved to be especially exasperating during the recently held T20 World Cup where Pandya was not in a position to bowl regularly. The lack of an additional bowling option hurt India’s chances as their bowling unit looked pedestrian during the Super 12 stages and couldn’t prevent losses against Pakistan and New Zealand.

Pandya had faced intense criticism due to his inability to bowl. However, in a recent interview, he claims that he was picked in the squad as a batter and wasn’t required to bowl. This contradicts BCCI Chief Selector Chetan Sharma’s statements as he had claimed that Pandya was included in the squad as an all-rounder and was expected to bowl as many as four overs regularly.

The 28-year-old also added that he felt he was being blamed for everything after the failures of the team. “The position we were in at the World Cup, I felt everything was thrown at me. I was selected in the squad as a batter. I worked hard to bowl in the 1st game, but I couldn’t. I did bowl in the 2nd one even when I wasn’t supposed to,” said the all-rounder on Backstage with Boria.

Pandya has been out of action for a long time and hasn’t been included in the fray since the T20 World Cup. As a result, India have looked at utilising Venkatesh Iyer in his place as an all-rounder but it hasn’t reaped immense rewards either.

Meanwhile, Hardik Pandya was recently appointed as the captain of the newly formed Ahmedabad franchise and he’s gearing up to be fully fit for IPL 2022 and is determined to make a comeback as an all-rounder. “I want to play as an all-rounder. If something goes bad, then I don’t know but my preparations are all about playing as an all-rounder. I am feeling good, feeling strong and eventually, the time will say what happens,” he added.

Another T20 World Cup is scheduled this year in Australia and Pandya is looking forward to peaking physically during that mega-tournament. He wants to feature in that competition and lead India to glory.

“My main aim is to be at my peak when the World Cup happens. All my training, planning, preparation is keeping the World Cup in mind. I want to win the World Cup for the country. It will make me really happy and proud. It is like an obsession with me,” Hardik was quoted as saying by Economic Times.