IPL 2018, RCB vs MI: Hits and Misses

#4 Hit: Hardik Pandya

Hardik Pandya finally found some form with the bat.

Even though Hardik Pandya has been quite disappointing with the bat, he has been quite decent with the ball in this season. He has got hit in a few games but he has picked up wickets at regular intervals.

In this game, he had a horror start. The Baroda all-rounder bowled a waist-high full-toss off his second delivery and was also hit for two sixes and a four in his first over. However, after conceding 20 runs in his first over, Pandya came back superbly.

He first affected an excellent runout to dismiss Brendon McCullum with a direct hit from mid-off. And then he conceded just 8 runs in his next two overs. Moreover, he picked up 3 wickets in one over (18th of the innings) to turn the game. He picked up the wickets of Mandeep Singh, Virat Kohli and Washington Sundar to change the complexion of the game.

With the bat, Hardik came in with MI 47/4 and tried to counter-attack as he hit Washington Sundar for a six and a four. He was looking in good touch as he raced off 21 off 13 balls but he slowed down after JP Duminy’s run out. However, he kept MI in the hunt and kept the scoreboard ticking. He scored a well-compiled half-century but he found no proper support at the other end.