andy wrote:Hardik seems a very good option, you have seen more of him than i have adi, can he rein it in and play a long innings if he needs too, or does he only play one way?
He made debut in recent test series on our tour of SL. Made some good contributions with the bat, however not impressed with the ball.
His bowling has always been usually wayward in the sense that he drift towards the leg stump. The control of the specialist bowlers is not yet there, but we have to consider he i not a specialist bowler to pitch it in right spot more often than not. If he pitches on the off stump line then it takes care even if the length is slightly wrong. Better to pitch it on wrong length on off and get away with it than pitch it on leg and go for runs. There is good scope to improve his line imo, otherwise he will keep leaking runs as well as lessen his chances of wickets.
His most impact will be in the fielding aspect. Hardik is now India's best out fielder. Previously it was Ajinkya who hardly dropped any catches in out field and is kept in crucial catching positions in out field.
His batting is good for the shorter formats, but i am not yet sure he will succeed on wickets in SA against the likes of Steyn, Rabada and Morkel. Even Indian specialist batters struggle there.
Pace bowling allrounder will be crucial to balance our playing 11 and i am sure that will help Hardik get in playing 11. It will be worthy imo to give him some experience first on such tough tours, and then start to expect.
Vijay Shankar has better batting technique than Hardik though.
Test FL's - 8 , ODI and Tests Combo FL's - 1, ODI World Cup - 1, ODI FL's - 7, ODI and T20i combo FL's - 1 ,
T20 Franchisee FL's - 7, T20i Cup FL's- 1, T20 FL's- 5 , 50 Overs Domestic FL's - 1, 40 Overs Domestic FL's- 1