More talented than Ben Stokes: Scott Styris praises India's star all-rounder

You have got to feel for India's star all-rounder, Hardik Pandya. The star cricketer guided Team India to win the 2024 T20 World Cup title after thwarting lethal batters Heinrich Klaasen and David Miller in the final moments despite going through a personal setback and when his confidence was at an all-time low following all that mocking and booing in the IPL 2024. The star all-rounder amassed 141 runs, scalped 11 wickets, and did everything that a vice captain ought to do in the showpiece event, yet was on the sidelines of a leadership role as the BCCI named Suryakumar Yadav as India's next T20I skipper.

It hurts so much, right?. But then again, one couldn't totally blame the team management, new head coach Gautam Gambhir, and selection panel. Hardik Pandya's infamous tryst and fitness, along with a plethora of injuries, show that the board wanted to have somebody who is fully fit and can be available for most of the matches. It's true that Indian cricket found Hardik Pandya in a spot last year when he was ruled out for four months due to the injuries he sustained during the ODI World Cup 2023 clash against Bangladesh at MCA in Pune. The board simply doesn't want this situation to come up again, which is why Suryakumar Yadav was named as the skipper and Shubman Gill as his deputy.

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You've got to lead us now by your performance: Scott Styris

In the same vein, former New Zealand cricketer Scott Styris was seen lauding Hardik Pandya and cheering up after he was snubbed from his captaincy post. The 49-year-old cricketer compared India's all-rounder Hardik Pandya to English Test captain Ben Stokes, who played a wonderful knock in the final game of the 2019 ODI World Cup and the 2022 T20 World Cup to guide England to becoming champions. The cricketer-turned-analyst stated that Hardik Pandya now has a great chance to lead the side, not with his captaincy skills but with his stunning performances.

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"This champion all-rounder (Pandya) has got as many skills as anyone. He's probably in a similar ability-zone as someone like Ben Stokes. He's got much more talent than that (his recent performances). He is a phenomenally skilled cricketer. But he hasn't quite shown it yet as consistently enough for my liking. So, just let him get out there and just say, you've got to lead us now by your performance," Styris told PTI Videos in an interview.

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