Hardik Pandya in post-match presentation ceremony© Twitter
It takes courage to admit one’s fault and India captain Hardik Pandya certainly had that after the team’s defeat in the 5th and final T20I against West Indies on Sunday. With the series on the line, after both teams won two games apiece in the first four games, the deciding encounter was won by the hosts. Chasing a target of 166 runs set by the Indians, Windies had 12 balls to spare and 8 wickets in hand as they succeeded in their mission. India captain Hardik admitted that his lack of rhythm and slow approach became a turning point as his team lost momentum during the back-10 overs.
The Indian team under Pandya lost its first bilateral series in the shortest format 2-3 against the West Indies but the skipper harped on the positives, like the emergence of youngsters like Tilak Varma and Yashasvi Jaiswal.
“We lost the momentum when I came in and couldn’t capitalize on the situation. I believe we gonna challenge ourselves. We try to get better. In hindsight, it is fine. We don’t need to explain much. I know how the boys are within the group. We have enough time to figure out. Losing is good at times,” he said in the post-match presentation ceremony.
“If you see, we lost that period post 10 overs. Since when I came, I wasn’t able to capitalise and I took my time and could not finish,” Pandya explained.
On a slow track, Pandya defended his decision to bat first.
“I believe that as a group we have to challenge ourselves. All these games are the games where we have to learn. We have spoken as a group that whenever we can take the hard way we will.
“In hindsight, one series here or there doesn’t matter but the commitment to the goal is important.” Pandya knows that India will play World T20 in this part of the world but doesn’t want to look too far ahead.
“It’s a long way. We have the ODI World Cup coming up. And sometimes losing is good. You get to learn a lot. And special mention for all the boys. They showed great character. Winning and losing is a part of the process and we are going to make sure we learn from that.” Some of his bowling changes were called out by critics but he said that he goes by his instincts.
“It is what I feel at the moment, I don’t plan much. If I see a situation, whatever my gut says I follow, ” Pandya said.
Pandya praised Varma and Jaiswal for their lion-hearted effort.
“They’ve got heart. That is something that’s very important in international cricket. Every youngster coming through has belief. That’s something I see very often now. Kudos to them, they came out and took responsibility. I can’t be happier as a captain,” he concluded.
With PTI inputs
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