Asia Cup: Mickey Arthur draws parallel between Hardik Pandya & THIS legendary all-rounder

Former cricketer-turned-coach Mickey Arthur on Sunday lauded India's star all-rounder Hardik Pandya for his outstanding performance against Pakistan at the ongoing Asia Cup. Arthur, who has coached the Pakistan men's cricket team in the past, compared Hardik with legendary South African all-rounder Jacques Kallis. Arthur said Hardik's presence in the Indian lineup is almost like the Men in Blue playing with 12 players. 

"Hardik in the side means it’s almost like India are playing with 12 players. It reminds me of my time back in South Africa when we had Jacques Kallis. You have a guy who can be one of your four seamers and bat in your top-five," Arthur told ESPNcricinfo.

Hardik put on an amazing performance with both the bat and the ball to help India win the nail-biting thriller. Hardik picked three wickets in the first innings and then scored an unbeaten 33 off 17 balls to finish the chase for his side. The Baroda-born cricketer forged a crucial 52-run partnership with Ravindra Jadeja to ensure a 5-wicket victory for India. India chased down 147 runs in 19.4 overs with Hardik hitting a six in the last over. 

India vs Pakistan

Earlier in the match, Indian skipper Rohit Sharma won the toss and elected to bowl first at Dubai International Stadium. Pakistan captain Babar Azam opened the batting alongside Mohammad Rizwan. The duo failed to form a partnership in the middle as Bhuvneshwar Kumar struck early to dismiss Azam for 10 runs. Avesh Khan then dismissed Fakhar Zaman for 10 runs before Hardik picked three wickets to expose Pakistan's middle order woes.

Despite the early shocker, the Men in Green recovered and reached the 147-run mark in their innings courtesy of some firepower from tailenders and an anchor's innings from Rizwan. 

In the second innings, debutant Naseem Shah dismissed KL Rahul for a duck in the very first over to put India under pressure. Virat Kohli and Rohit Sharma then forged a 49-run partnership to steady the ship. Both Kohli and Rohit were dismissed by Nawaz for 12 and 35 runs, respectively. Suryakumar Yadav scored 18 runs before being removed by Naseem Shah. Hardik and Jadeja then forged the partnership to tilt the game in India's favour. 

Image: Twitter/@DerbyshireCCC/@hardikpandya7