India Start Strong Despite Pitch Concerns, Hardik Pandya Shines

On Wednesday, the subpar surface at New York's Nassau County International Stadium stole the show once more. Nevertheless, India made sure to check the box for having a strong start to the T20 World Cup.

That is undoubtedly crucial for maintaining team morale, particularly in the lead-up to more difficult projects. The decisive victory on Wednesday ought to benefit India's psyche ahead of their match on Sunday against bitter rivals Pakistan.

The Indian bowlers, especially the seam attack, were impressive as they maintained discipline for the whole of the innings, while the Irish batsmen's lack of effort made it easy for the Indian pacers to do their jobs. However, Hardik Pandya's performance in the Ireland game was a major plus (3/27).

Since being named Mumbai Indians captain, the seamer all-arounder has been under pressure, and the team has performed poorly under his direction in the current IPL season. Pandya did, however, deliver with the ball on a few occasions throughout the IPL, finishing with 11 scalps from 14 matches.

Batters were unable to unleash massive blows off his bowling at the drop of a hat when the pitches had anything in them for the bowlers. The movement he was able to extract off the field on Wednesday was what got him his first few wickets. It won't be simple for India's opponents to stop Pandya if they encounter similar pitches or conditions later in the campaign.

As this is only the first Cup match, it is too soon to make any judgments regarding Pandya's bowling. However, Madan Lal, a former all-rounder for India and former selector, acknowledged to The Telegraph on Thursday that he was a wicket-taker.

Aside from his fluid movement, he is the type of bowler who can grab a couple of wickets even when he hits for extra runs. Taking wickets gives you an advantage at all times.

"Hardik had a great appearance. He's been bowling pretty well, even throughout practice. Vikram Rathour, India's batting coach, stated, "He appears healthy enough to last four overs and he has been bowling with some pace and some accuracy."

Third debate resolved

Rishabh Pant stepped out to bat at No. 3 against Ireland and was successful, just as he had done in the warm-up match against Bangladesh the previous week. He was undefeated at 36 off 26 balls on a challenging pitch and made sure to stick to his unconventional strokeplay. That too, following a blow to his left elbow.

It remains to be seen if this switch would help India in the long run, but Pant appears at ease batting at No. 3, which is encouraging for the team. Pant has appeared incredibly well in the two games that he has played in.

"So yes, he is our No. 3 right now, and his left-handedness helps," Rathour emphasized.

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