Hardik Pandya fight - (Source: X.Com)
On Sunday, January 25, India and New Zealand locked horns in the third of the five-match T20I series in Guwahati. The Men in Blue won the toss and opted to field first. New Zealand, batting first, struggled to put big score on the board and amassed just 153/9 runs after 20 overs.
Jasprit Bumrah returned to form and bagged a three-wicket haul. Ravi Bishnoi and Hardik Pandya were also on-point with two wickets each. Overall, the fielding was excellent, but there was one moment where the MI skipper lost his cool on Kuldeep Yadav over a fielding effort.
Hardik Pandya slams Kuldeep Yadav for his fielding
Notably, Hardik, who is animated on the field, registered the figures of 2/23 in his three overs. However, on one of his deliveries, Pandya bowled a short-pitched delivery to Daryl Mitchell, who placed a shot right above the head of Kuldeep.
The spinner tried his best to get a hand on the ball, but couldn’t because of an ill-timed jump. The effort was not appreciated by Hardik Pandya. The right-arm seamer was angry with Kuldeep because Mitchell was a big fish and he had troubled India a lot in this series.
Pandya raised his arms in disappointment and also gestured towards Suryakumar Yadav, signalling what kind of effort that was. Meanwhile, Kuldeep too didn’t appreciate Hardik’s behaviour.
Hardik Pandya also lost cool in 2nd T20I
Even in the 2nd T20I, a video has gone viral, in which Pandya nearly got Zakary Foulkes out, but then followed a chain of reaction, abusive slurs, and also a disappointment with himself. Pandya was caught abusing Foulkes and then grabbed his sweater from the umpire and made an angry walk back to his fielding position. Even while walking back, Pandya lost his temper and blabbered stuff in frustration.
For the unversed, Pandya was upset with something even before the start of the 2nd T20I, as he was caught arguing with former India cricketer turned presenter Murali Karthik as he walked for practice.
He had an angry exchange of words with commentator Murali Kartik and it all began when Hardik walked out of the pavilion for a practice session before the game commenced. At one point, Hardik even pointed fingers at the Indian commentator.
Hardik Pandya flaunts brilliant fielding in 3rd T20I
One of the primary reasons why Hardik was unhappy with Kuldeep was because he himself took a brilliant catch in the first over of the game. Harshit Rana bowled a fuller delivery onto the stumps, and Conway moved down the leg side to create some room and take the aerial route over the mid-on on just the third ball of the match.
His bat turned with impact, which made the timing completely off. Hardik Pandya, stationed at mid-on, was very alert and jumped to his left to complete a stunning catch. It was a sensational catch given Hardik Pandya has a history of back injuries.
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.jpg?type=mq "Hardik Pandya's catch")
