Kingston: Promising ‘fearless’ cricket in the series-deciding fifth ODI against the West Indies here Thursday, all-rounder Hardik Pandya said that he backs himself to be a finisher for India after failing to do the job in the previous game.
India needed 29 off 31 balls when Pandya (20 off 21) got out in the fourth ODI which the visitors eventually lost by 11 runs. MS Dhoni’s slow knock also did not help India’s cause.
Talking about his partnership with Dhoni, Pandya said they were confident about chasing down the modest 190-run target.
“The conversation with MS was pretty simple to be honest. The power which we both have we thought to take the innings deep and then chase it down. Most times we would chase 31 off 29 balls but then on that particular day we were not able to finish. I back myself to finish the game for the team and all these instances are part of the learnings,” stated Pandya.
“We will be fearless in the final game. Last game was one of those where it did not click. But we will go ahead and express ourselves, that is when we play our best cricket,” added the all-rounder.
Pandya looked good in the Champions Trophy final against Pakistan last month before a terrible mix up with Ravindra Jadeja ended his knock. The all-rounder said he was angry but it did not take him long to get over the dismissal.
“It took a lot of time. Only three minutes to be honest,” he quipped with a deadpan face. “It was just an outburst. I get hyper quickly and after few minutes I was laughing in the dressing room. Looking at me, some of the players were laughing too.”
Pandya added that he was aware of the conditions in the West Indies even before he landed in the Caribbean, thanks to his Mumbai Indians teammates in the IPL.
“I am pretty close to the names you took (Kieron Pollard and Lendl Simmons, who are not part of the ODI team). The first call was to Pollard. I asked him about the pitches and conditions. They are my brothers from another mother. It would have been nice to play against them and enjoy some healthy banter,” he added.
Press Trust of India
