Abdul Razzaq called Hardik Pandya a complete all-rounder.
Former Pakistan all-rounder Abdul Razzaq opened up about his controversial statement about the Indian all-rounder Hardik Pandya. Razzaq had claimed that Pandya is nowhere near the legendary all-rounder Kapil Dev and for which, he was criticized by the fans and cricket experts.
Now, reacting his controversial remark, former Pakistani cricketer said that his statement about Pandya was misconstrued by the critics, saying he was just giving an advice to the Indian star being a former all-rounder. Razzaq said that Pandya is a complete all-rounder, but he needs to work on some areas.
Abdul Razzaq told Times of India: “My earlier statement on Hardik Pandya was taken the wrong way. I didn't mean it. As a cricketer, I just said there is scope for improvement in him (Pandya). I didn't comment on a player who is from India, England, or Australia.”
He continued, “I just said things as a cricketer. If Kapil Dev says that he wants to give advice to Abdul Razzaq, I will take this statement positively. He can work on a couple of things which according to him are areas of improvement - in terms of foot movement, bat movement, and how to judge a delivery before it is bowled. That was what I meant earlier. That was just a statement as a former all-rounder. People took it the wrong way and criticized me as well.”
Razzaq signed off by saying, “Hardik is a complete all-rounder. But no one is perfect. Everyone needs improvement in certain areas. When I was playing, I also lacked certain things. Wasim Akram was the same, Imran Khan was the same, Kapil Dev was the same. But still, we consider them all to be greats of the game.”