Former Indian captain Sunil Gavaskar lavished rich praise on Hardik Pandya. He believes the all-rounder will be a game-changer for Team India in the T20Is. 

Pandya made his comeback in the Indian team in the first T20I against South Africa on 9th June. Although the hosts lost the match, his presence did a lot of good for them. The all-rounder blasted a quick fire 31* runs in just 12 balls and helped his side post a mammoth total of 211 runs. With the ball, he bowled one over but was expensive. 

Pandya has often been under the scanner for being unfit and getting in and out of the Indian team due to fitness issues. He last played for the national side during the T20 World Cup 2021 and made a comeback through IPL 2022. The all-rounder scored 487 runs and also took 8 wickets in the tournament, also leading Gujarat Titans to the title. 

Read Also: I got up at 5 am, made sacrifices- Hardik Pandya on speculations before his comeback in IPL 2022

Him being back fully fit is the biggest positive for the Indian side, considering the upcoming T20 World Cup 2022 in October.

Speaking to Star Sports, Gavaskar said that Pandya is going to be a game-changer with both bat and ball for India in all the upcoming games. He expressed his desire to see the all-rounder taking the new ball.

"I think he is going to be the game-changer for India, more often than not, in all the matches that are due to come, not just the World Cup but every single match that India plays, whether he bats at No. 5, whether he comes into bowl at first change or second change. Sometimes I will actually want to see him with the new ball," Sunil Gavaskar said. 

Pandya will be next seen in action when India will take on South Africa in the second T20I in Cuttack on Sunday (12th June). 

(Star Sports Inputs)