IND vs AUS 2022: "Aap batao, mujhe nahi pata"- Hardik Pandya hits back at reporter in support of Harshal Patel
All-rounder Hardik Pandya came in support of pacer Harshal Patel after India's loss against Australia in the first T20I in Mohali on Tuesday, September 20. Harshal returned to the team after being out for a few weeks with a side strain.
He couldn't deliver with the ball as he leaked 49 runs in his four overs, including a game-defining 18th over where he was smashed for 22 runs. Despite losing wickets at regular intervals, Australia won the game quite comfortably with four balls to spare.
In the post-match press conference, a reporter asked Pandya whether that 18th over was the turning point of the game, as the visitors still needed 40 off the final three overs, which wasn't an easy ask.
Death bowling economy in 2022:
Bumrah: 7.66 eco
Bhuvneshwar: 9.54 eco
Harshal: 10.57 eco
Arshdeep: 7.19 eco
Pandya, in his own witty manner, gave a sarcastic reply. He said:
"Aap batao, mujhe nahi pata. humko pata hota toh abhi tak game mai he rok dete na. (You tell me, I don’t know. If we knew, we would have stopped that in the field itself)."
We cannot pinpoint, it is a game - Hardik Pandya on India's death bowling
The Men in Blue suffered a lot of criticism for their death bowling in the Asia Cup 2022, and that continued on Tuesday. Australia needed 55 runs off their four overs, but they still won the game convincingly.
We’ll learn. We’ll improve. A big thanks to all our fans for your support, always 🇮🇳 🙏 https://t.co/yMSVCRkEBI
Hardik Pandya defended the bowlers and said that the team will take the learnings from the game and move ahead. He stated:
“Dekho sir, pinpoint kuch nahi kar sakte aap kabhi bhi. Wo game hai, Un logon ke side say bhi over mai 24-25 runs aye hain toh usse kuch farak nahi padta. Bilateral series hai, aur 2 match milenge, behtar hone ki koshish karenge (We cannot pinpoint, it’s a game and they even bowled a few expensive overs. It doesn’t make any difference. There are two more matches and we will try to improve)."
India will hope to bounce back and keep the series alive in the second game on Friday, September 23, in Nagpur.
Will Jasprit Bumrah's return strengthen India's bowling attack in the next game? Let us know in the comments.