Former Indian selector Saba Karim asked the stand-in skipper Hardik Pandya to focus on his attitude and trust his players ahead of the second Twenty20 international against Sri Lanka to be played at the Maharashtra Cricket Association (MCA) Stadium in Pune on Thursday (January 5).
However, Karim was really impressed with Hardik’s captaincy and the way he approached the game and handled Shivam Mavi during India’s 2-run win over Sri Lanka in the first T20I, but he still feels showing a lot of emotions as captain can make players fearful during the match, so he must avoid doing that.
Speaking to India News, Saba Karim said: “I think he needs to focus on his attitude. Everyone likes him as a player because of his attitude. As a captain, if you show a lot of emotions on the field, players will get fearful. I don’t think that’s the right thing for a team to grow. You have to trust your players.”
The former Indian wicketkeeper-batter was impressed to see how Pandya was ready to tackle any challenges thrown at him in the first match. He also lauded the all-rounder for giving Mavi the ball in the powerplay, and the debutant ended up taking four wickets at the Wankhede Stadium.
Karim signed off by saying, “I liked two things about captain Hardik Pandya. He said that he wanted to bat regardless of the toss. It means he knows the challenges ahead; bilateral matches are aside, but you have to learn something in every match and put your team in a tough situation. The second thing is that debutant Shivam Mavi bowled in the powerplay. It means that, as a captain, he wants to lead by example.”
