South Africa great AB de Villiers' blunt reaction to the ongoing Hardik Pandya-Tilak Varma controversy during a recent India versus West Indies contest went viral on social media.
AB de Villiers' remarks come amid a raging row where Hardik Pandya has been on the receiving end of increasing criticism from fans following his act of completing his side's win in the third T20I against the West Indies with a six.
His move left young India batter Tilak Varma stranded on 49*, thus denying him a chance to complete his second fifty in international cricket.
He was characterized as a “snake” following his bizarre call, denying his teammate Tilak Varma an opportunity to bring up his second half-century in international cricket.
Hardik Pandya's act was termed pathetic, shameful, and full of selfishness by cricket supporters who slammed him on social media following India's seven-wicket triumph over the West Indies.
Even the legendary MS Dhoni's fans were left scratching their heads after Hardik Pandya denied Tilak Varma a chance to complete his half-century against the West Indies.
Hardik Pandya's move led MS Dhoni supporters to dub him the “clown”, who should never be compared with the former India skipper, considering he was a selfless cricketer.
Also, Hardik Pandya was branded a “chapri” or “chhapri” after his move left young left-handed batter Tilak Varma stranded at 49*.
As per a definition in Urban Dictionary, a “chapri” or “chhapri” is described as a “person with no sense of responsibility. Someone who thinks getting trendy haircuts and clothes makes him/her special and attractive and often wastes his/her time on social media without any contribution to society”.
After West Indies posted a score of 159/5 in their allotted 20 overs, the Indian cricket team found itself under tremendous pressure at 34/2, having lost both openers by the time Suryakumar Yadav and Tilak Varma joined each other for a grand fightback.
While Yashasvi Jaiswal got out for 1 in his debut game, Shubman Gill's poor run of form continued in the series as he perished for six. After that, Suryakumar Yadav and Tilak Varma took the lead, forging an 87-run partnership before the former was sent back to the pavilion by Alzarri Joseph for 83.
After Suryakumar Yadav's departure, Hardik Pandya came out to bat and immediately found his groove in the middle. As the Indian innings proceeded, the Men in Blue required only two runs to register their first win in the five-match series with more than two overs to spare.
With Tilak Varma batting at 49*, everyone thought Hardik Pandya would allow him to reach his half-century. But, the India skipper was in no mood to delay his side's victory as he finished the contest with a six.
Like the fans, ex-India opener Aakash Chopra was baffled by Hardik Pandya's six, which left Tilak Varma stranded on 49*.
Aakash Chopra argued that Hardik Pandya should have allowed Tilak Varma to take the strike because the net run rate was not in the picture. Further, he insisted that the India skipper's decision to hit the ball over the ropes lacked common sense because young players need motivation from seniors and not snubs like Hardik Pandya delivered to Tilak Varma.
“Tilak Varma, outstanding. First Indian to get 30+ scores in his first three international innings. He scored a fifty in his previous games and was close to another this time too, in fact, it should've been a fifty. His temperament is good, his range is good, he was aggressive at first and then was happy to play second-fiddle to Suryakumar,” Aakash Chopra said on his YouTube channel.
“Hardik comes to bat, tells him it's important to remain not out, don't get carried away. Then Hardik hits aggressive hits… you don't need NRR, it would've made no difference. He told Tilak to go easy, but tried to hit big shots himself. You needed 2 runs off 13 balls, and he smashed a six. I'm sure they want to build a culture that doesn't care about individual milestones. But even a not out doesn't really matter here, even if you were out there, you still had 12 balls there to score 2 runs. Tilak was denied a chance to score a fifty. That's just my opinion, though,” he added.
After questioning Hardik Pandya's call, Aakash Chopra's opinion changed, suggesting he doesn't have to think like MS Dhoni every time.
“Just to touch upon it. It's an interesting one, Hardik Pandya has been trolled a lot and has been criticized. But there's another school of thought that says, why are you talking about milestones in T20 cricket? So, that was quite in the middle of conversation,” Aakash Chopra argued.
“I remember once MS Dhoni played a forward defensive shot because he wanted him to finish it off, he didn't want to take the limelight. But Hardik doesn't have to be a Dhoni, even if he considers him an idol,” he elaborated.
Amid the escalating debate over the topic, cricket commentator Harsha Bhogle shared his views.
“I am puzzled by the discussion around Tilak Varma missing out on a 50. It isn't a landmark, in fact other than a century (which is rare), there are no landmarks in T20 cricket. We are far too obsessed with individual achievement within a team sport. I don't believe 50s should be recorded in individual stats in T20 cricket. If you have made enough runs quickly enough (avg and SR), that is all that matters,” he tweeted.
Replying to Harsha Bhogle's tweet, AB de Villiers posted, “Thank you thank you thank you. Finally someone says it!”
AB de Villiers' words set the influential social network on fire, garnering more than 850,000 views and nearly 8,000 likes.
Hardik Pandya's Team India will face the West Indies in the fourth T20I in Lauderhill on Saturday.
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