Mercurial all-rounder Hardik Pandya received wholesome praise from netizens after Team India scripted history in China during the weekend. On Saturday, Ruturaj Gaikwad and his boys clinched the country's maiden gold medal in men's cricket at the Asian Games.

 

The landmark feat came in Hangzhou after the final between India and Afghanistan in the Chinese city was interrupted by heavy showers, and the Men in Blue were declared the winners due to their higher seeding in Asia's greatest multi-sports spectacle.

 

After India won the toss and opted to bowl first, Afghanistan found themselves in a deep hole at 12/3 after Zubaid Akbari (5), Mohammad Shahzad (4), and Noor Ali Zadran (1) got out in the first four overs of their essay.

 

However, Shahidullah's unbeaten 49 off 43 deliveries helped them to 112/5 in 18.2 overs when heavy rain began pouring down at the Zhejiang University of Technology Cricket Field, and the umpires decided to call off the game.

 

Notably, the 2023 Asian Games were historic for the Indian men's and women's cricket teams.

 

Before the Ruturaj Gaikwad-led side's success, the Indian women's cricket team bagged the yellow metal, giving the South Asian nation their first-ever gold medal at the continental showpiece event.

 

Interestingly, the Indians failed to win a medal at the previous editions of the Asian Games after cricket was inducted into the prestigious competition in 2010.

 

Against this backdrop, cricket admirers shared Hardik Pandya's previous statement in which he asserted that the Indian team had depth in their reserves and could even win a tournament if all eleven players from the first side were unavailable.

 

“The kind of talent which the Indian team possesses right now, I think we can pick two more teams and win any competition in the world,” Hardik Pandya said a few years ago.

 

With India finishing on top of the podium at the Asian Games, fans declared that Hardik Pandya was correct about assessing the capabilities and the skillset of the Indian players.

 

As his prophecy came true, Indian cricket lovers praised him for foreseeing the future.

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Hardik Pandya will be in action on Sunday when the Rohit Sharma-led Team India will square off against Australia in their 2023 Cricket World Cup opener in Chennai.

 

Meanwhile, Hardik Pandya earned rich plaudits from captain Rohit Sharma, who stressed that the all-rounder was vital for the Indian cricket team's balance. 

 

Furthermore, Hardik Pandya provides India the flexibility to include three spinners in the side if the track appears to have help for slow bowlers.

 

Rohit Sharma hinted at a similar role for Hardik Pandya during India's contest against Australia.

“Yeah, I mean that's the luxury we have where we can afford to play three spinners because I don't really consider Hardik Pandya as just a seamer. He (Hardik) is a proper fast bowler, who can crank up good speed. So, that gives us an advantage. That gives us that luxury of playing three spinners and three seamers as well. So, there's a possibility of that,” Rohit Sharma said in the pre-match press conference in the Tamil Nadu capital.

 

“We definitely want to be a team where we want to play the best 11, but you can pick your best 11 based on the conditions that you have in front of you. Where there is a bit of assistance to the slower bowlers, you need to bring in those slower bowlers. So, your core of the team will remain the same. Your 8, 9, 10 players will remain the same. There will be one or two changes here and there, which you've got to be ready to accept and take it into your stride and move forward,” Rohit Sharma explained. 

According to former India opener Gautam Gambhir, who played a crucial role in the team's 2011 World Cup victory, Rohit Sharma and his men would have to beat Australia to reclaim the title this year.

 

“Look, I have always said this, and there is no doubt in this, that if you want to win the World Cup, then you have to beat Australia. In 2007 when we won the World Cup, we defeated Australia in the semifinal. In 2011 when we won the World Cup, we beat Australia in the quarterfinal. Australia is the strongest team in any ICC tournament. Remove the ranking, the ranking does not matter,” Gautam Gambhir said on Star Sports.

 

“You can be in any position in the rankings, but Australia, when it comes to those big tournaments, the World Cups, I think Australia has got the players, they have got the self-belief, Australia has the ability to play those big moments really well. And you can see this, the two World Cups that India won, we had to beat Australia in the knockout stage two times. And the World Cups that we have lost, in 2015 we lost to Australia. So I believe that if we have to win the World Cup this year, Australia is going to be the most important game, and we start against Australia, so there is nothing better than that. So beating Australia is very, very important,” the former India batter added.