Former India opener Gautam Gambhir has showered rich praise on Hardik Pandya, saying the all-rounder belongs to the category of players such as Yuvraj Singh and MS Dhoni, who are capable of chasing down whatever target is set in front of them.

See Also: "He is as good as Russell, maybe better", Harbhajan lauds Hardik Pandya

Chasing 195 to win in the second T20I against Australia at SCG, Pandya slammed 42 off 22 balls and 14 in the final over to take the visitors over the line with six wickets and two balls to spare.

“Hardik Pandya has played these kinds of innings in the Indian Premier League, and when you come into international cricket on the back of good innings in the IPL, then your confidence is very high. Pandya has played innings like these for Mumbai Indians. So, in that sense, he did not do anything new on Sunday (against Australia in 2nd T20I).

“There are very few players like Hardik Pandya, there was Yuvraj Singh and MS Dhoni earlier and there is Glenn Maxwell now, they are capable of chasing any total or any target. Even if you need 20-25 runs in the last over, these players make you believe that they can score it,” Gambhir said on ESPNcricinfo.

In the final over, Pandya hit debutant pacer Daniel Sams for two sixes to seal the deal for India. He also earned the Player-of-the-Match award for his heroics with the bat.

With this victory, the Men in Blue also took an unassailable 2-0 lead in the three-match T20I series.

The third and final T20I will be played in Sydney on Tuesday (December 8).