Veteran off-spinner R Ashwin has lauded Hardik Pandya for his honesty as he admitted that he will not be playing in the upcoming ICC WTC final for India, where they are slated to face Australia at the Oval in London from June 7-11.
Hardik hasn't played Test cricket since 2018 owing to his recurring back injury. But thanks to his successful comeback to competitive cricket in IPL 2022 which came after a six-month break, and with India requiring a balance in the side with a fast-bowling all-rounder in English conditions, the discussion on Hardik's return to red-ball cricket had started.
But Pandya said that it’ll be unethical for him to return to the side for the final and take someone else's spot when he hasn't contributed anything towards the team's run to the big match.
“No. I am an ethically very strong person. I haven’t done 10% to reach there. I am not even a part of the 1%. So me coming there and taking someone’s place will ethically not go well. If I want to play Test cricket, I’ll go through the grind and earn my spot. Hence, for that reason I will not be available for the WTC final or future test series until I feel that I have earned my spot,” Hardik had said.
Ashwin, speaking on his YouTube channel, lauded Hardik Pandya’s statement.
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"We have reached the WTC final and many felt that Hardik Pandya must return to the Test side. Of course, those opinions were great since Hardik has done well in England with the limited Tests he has played there. But Hardik has said that it won't do justice and, 'I will come back when I feel it's the right time to play Test cricket and I haven't even played one percent role in qualifying for the finals'. This is a proper statement to the cricket fraternity and to the entire world by Hardik Pandya," the veteran spinner said.
“We often tend to blame others for our failures. We believe in superstitions or find other reasons because at the end of the day, we are disappointed. But Hardik has accepted that he isn't eligible to play the Test at the moment. That is a big statement coming from a player- like him. Hats off to Hardik Pandya,” he added.
Ashwin was also full of praise for Hardik's captaincy in the first ODI match against Australia in Mumbai.
“Why am I hyping this so much about Hardik? Well, because he led us in Rohit Sharma's absence in the first ODI against Australia. Many have praised saying that he doesn't back down from a challenge. Australia was on course for a huge total. But Hardik played a role in bringing back Siraj and Shami even after the spinners took two wickets because he felt there was something in the wicket for the pacers. To get a team all out for 188 from 155 for three is a phenomenal achievement by India,” he said.
(Hindustan Times inputs)
