Proteas Legend Shaun Pollock has a golden advice for Pandya

Hardik Pandya should focus on one aspect of his game: Pollock

India has been searching for a Kapil Dev-like all-rounder for quite some time now. Only recently, Hardik Pandya has shown some promising talent to become one of the finest all-rounders India has ever produced.

Pandya has also earned a spot for becoming a regular feature in Indian Test side.

But South African Legend, Shaun Pollock has adviced Pandya not to don several hats and focus on one aspect of his game for playing in the long run.

Pollock regards England all-rounder Ben Stokes as the one of the best in the world. The former South African captain said, “T20 cricket has made many realize that they are capable of contributing with both bat and ball. As far as all-rounders are concerned, I think Ben Stokes is one of the best.”

“Talking about Indian cricket, I believe Hardik Pandya is a long-term all-round prospect. I think skipper Kohli really likes his attitude towards the game. It seems that he can pick wickets and score runs at the same time. Rest, time will us,” he added.

“Pandya needs to settle down and choose one of the two disciplines (bowling or batting), something that cements his place in the side. Contributing with both would be difficult.”

Hardik Pandya has played eight Test matches where he has taken seven scalps and has scored 421 runs at an average of 35.08.

Pollock criticizes ICC’s ‘two ball concept’ in the limited-overs

“If he settles down and manages to get a good run, he has the potential of becoming a wonderful all-rounder for India.

Pollock, who has scored 3,519 runs and taken 393 wickets in 303 ODIs he played, also echoed Sachin Tendulkar’s voice criticizing ICC’s decision of introducing two new balls in the limited-overs format.

“It takes away the reverse swing. When you play in a sub-continent, the ball gets soft and it gets very difficult to hit back end of the innings,” he said.

“We had to change the ball after 34th over because the ball started to lose its colour, particularly on the abrasive subcontinent wickets,” he added.