Where’s Hardik Pandya? Asks Naseer Hussain; Ricky Ponting Remembers What All-rounder Said

As Australia reached 327/3 at the Wednesday cutoff in the World Test Championship (WTC) final, India seemed helpless.

Umesh Yadav was slower than normal, and many speculated that he could be injured, despite the fact that Mohammed Shami, Mohammed Siraj, and Shardul Thakur each took a wicket.

Ravindra Jadeja, the world’s best bowler, was the sole seamer Rohit Sharma chose to use; Ravichandran Ashwin was left out to carry refreshments for the starting XI.

Nasser Hussain, a former England captain, questioned where Hardik Pandya was during the commentary.

“At the toss this morning, it was so evident that Australia was crystal clear and that India was unsure about their side. Cameron Green has a lot to do with it. He just strikes a balance on the side facing away from home in England. India would have cherished having a cricketer like him. Naturally, Shardul Thakur is a kind of seam-bowling all-rounder. Axar Patel, Jadeja, and Ashwin are all from India. In Indian circumstances, they are total all-rounders, but what about an all-round seam bowler when you go abroad? How is Hardik Pandya doing? Hussain inquired about the play’s comments during the final session.

When asked why he wouldn’t be available for the one-time WTC final, former Australia captain Ricky Ponting subsequently said that Hardik Pandya had said it would be unfair on the other Indian players.

“That is the only sentence that was brought up in today’s comments. Hardik made it plain that he believes his body won’t be able to withstand the strain of playing Test cricket. He was sickened throughout this match; what do you think about taking part in this one-off Test to enhance the team’s balance? He presumably responded that he didn’t think it was fair to the other players who had gone through the same experience in the years preceding up to the game, Ponting claimed.

Hardik had in fact stated just that.

“No. I have a really strong sense of morality. To get there, I haven’t put in 10% of the effort. I don’t even make up 1% of the population. Therefore, it would be unethical for me to go there and replace someone, Hardik had stated before to the ODIs against Australia in March.

“I’ll work hard and earn my position if I want to play Test cricket. I won’t be eligible for the WTC final or any next Test series as a result until I believe that I have earned my position, he had added.