Kapil Dev expressed doubt about Hardik Pandya’s future in Test cricket, stating that he doesn’t expect Pandya to play many Test matches going forward. While Kapil agreed that Pandya should participate in red-ball cricket if he’s fit, he doesn’t believe that will happen. The ongoing discussion about whether Pandya’s body can handle the demands of Test cricket has been a topic in Indian cricket. Although Pandya made his Test debut in Sri Lanka in 2017 and last played a Test during the England tour in 2018, his involvement in Test cricket remains uncertain.
According to Nasser Hussain, a former England captain, India requires an all-rounder similar to Ben Stokes in order to thrive in overseas Test matches. When questioned about whether Hardik Pandya can fulfill this role for India in Test cricket, Kapil Dev responded to The Times of India:
Kapil Dev said
“Doesn’t look like he will.” The Indian all rounder added, “I saw his photograph on the billboard today. I don’t know whether they did any touch-up or not, but in that, he looked like having one of the finest bodies we have in the country. Yes, he should play more cricket because he has so much ability. If he is fit, he should play Test cricket also.”
In a previous interview with The Week magazine, Kapil Dev had contradicted former India head coach Ravi Shastri’s perspective that Hardik Pandya’s body is not equipped to handle the physical challenges of Test cricket. It’s worth noting that Pandya faced a significant lower-back injury during the Asia Cup in 2018, which has affected his bowling capabilities.
Since Kapil Dev’s retirement in 1994, India has not discovered a fast-bowling all-rounder of his caliber. However, Kapil, now 64 years old, doesn’t consider the situation to be overly concerning. He highlighted that although there’s been a scarcity of fast bowlers with batting prowess, India has successfully produced high-quality spin-bowling all-rounders.
“I don’t think it is right to compare players. Last 20-30 years, we have produced enough fast bowlers whom we can depend on. And that is more important. And it is not just fast-bowling all-rounders you require, you need spin-bowling all-rounders’ as well. And you have some decent ones in the Indian team. Jadeja is fantastic, Ashwin is doing a great job. So it isn’t that we don’t have any all-rounders at all,” Kapil opined.
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