---

Is Hardik Pandya Better Than Ben Stokes?

Ever since making a return to competitive cricket, Hardik Pandya has been one of the best players in the world. Coming back after a long injury lay-off, the Indian all-rounder has been a beast with the bat as well as and ball. Starting off in the Indian Premier League 2022, Hardik Pandya shined for Gujarat Titans.

He had a mighty impressive season with the bat and the ball while also catching the eye with his leadership skills, taking the newly formed IPL franchise to a title triumph in their debut season. Following his performances in India’s cash rich cricket league, the 27-year-old managed to such replicate those performances in national colours as well. In 2022, Hardik Pandya has scored 436 runs in 19 games while registering a jaw dropping strike rate in which is in excess of over 150.

He has played clutch innings for India in the shortest format of the game, be it in the recently concluded T20I series against Australia or the Asia Cup 2022 where he snatched a win against Pakistan in India’s campaign opener. Substantial contributions by Hardik Pandya with both bat and ball has proved to be a solid sign for the Men in Blue who are gearing up their preparation ahead of the highly anticipated ICC T20 World Cup in Australia.

Expert Comments on Hardik Pandya and Ben Stokes

Recently, former New Zealand star Corey Anderson, who played with the Indian star at Mumbai Indians has named him over Ben Stokes as the best all-rounder during his conversation with Firstpost.com. He is quoted saying, “It’s a tough one! They are very similar players. Looking at the current form, I’ll probably pick Hardik Pandya. I think people have fallen in love with Pandya’s comeback story and the Indian all-rounder has kind of thrived on it.”

“His(Hardik Pandya) confidence at the moment is sky-high and a guy like him can be very dangerous with that kind of confidence. Ben Stokes is obviously a gun player himself, so it’s a very difficult question. At the moment, I’ll probably go with Hardik Pandya but during the upcoming T20 World Cup, I might prefer Stokes,” Anderson added.

ALSO READ: Suryakumar Yadav SAID THIS On HIS Health During the Final T20I

Earlier, Sunil Gavaskar had praised Hardik Pandya and called him India’s trump card. He stated that the Indian all-rounder can replicate Ravi Shastri’s antics during the 1985 Cricket World Cup.

The 73 year old said, “Yes, I think he could possibly do what Ravi Shastri did in 1985 where Ravi was the outstanding performer with both bat and ball in the entire tournament. Some good catches as well. Hardik Pandya is capable of doing that. It’s not just the bowling and the batting aspects of Hardik Pandya, but the fielding aspect that could turn the game India’s way.”

“Don’t forget, at mid-off, he affects some electrifying runouts as well. Direct hits at the bowler’s end, catching the batter inches short. I won’t be surprised if he is like the Ravi Shastri of 1985 if he is like the Champion of Champions,” he added.

However, Former Pakistan wicket-keeper Rashid Latif believes that Stokes is better than Pandya. He was quoted saying, ” Ben Stokes has a proven record. He won Test matches for England and the World Cup too. Stokes is way ahead of Hardik based on the international trophies.”

“I don’t think you can even compare when it comes to (performances) on the ground. Because trophy is a trophy. Ben Stokes is way ahead of Hardik in that. Having said that, yes, some of Hardik’s innings have been better than Ben Stokes, but having better innings and being better than Stokes are two completely different things,” he added. 

Former cricketer and experts remains on two ends of a rope. Ben Stokes has played match winning innings in the past but has not been able to play like his former self in the last few months. Hardik Pandya on the other end has been absolutely sensational for the Men in Blue. With the highly anticipated upcoming T20 World Cup just around, the ICC event will be a good platform to determine who is better performer amongst the duo.

For more fantasy sports news and poker promotions, keep reading GutshotMagazine.com. Follow us on Facebook, Instagram, Twitter, and Telegram. 

---

---

More News

---

Comments