‘I don’t try to take wickets’: Hardik Pandya reveals the secret to his all-round performance in T20 World Cup 2024

India have performed remarkably well in this T20 World Cup, beating all the teams they have faced so far and are now on the verge of securing a semi-final berth. A major positive for the team in the tournament so far has been the performance of all-rounder Hardik Pandya, who has not only won matches for the team with the bat, but has also contributed immensely with the ball.

Notably, Hardik Pandya wasn't in the best of form before the World Cup. In fact, Pandya failed miserably as a captain and as a player during the IPL 2024 season, which ended just before the World Cup. However, Hardik Pandya in the T20 World Cup 2024 is a different story.

In the 5 matches played so far, Hardik has taken 8 wickets at an economy rate of 6.47, with best figures of 3/27 against Ireland in the opening match. As for his batting, Pandya has scored 89 runs at a strike rate of 141 and an average of 44.50 in the 5 matches.

The all-rounder spoke about his performance in this year's World Cup during an interaction with former India head coach Ravi Shastri. In a video posted on the ICC's official Instagram handle, Pandya revealed that he doesn't really try to take wickets and instead focuses on bowling good deliveries.

Pandya said, “Jasprit and I went on talking about the fact I don't really try to take wickets. I just try to bowl good balls and see what is required for the team. There's nothing called your own performance in this sport. It's all about what's required, bowling the right ball and right situation. In that process, if I get a wicket, it's good."

Pandya also talked about the hard work he does in order to keep performing in all areas. He said, “There's a lot of hard work that I need to do to fire on all cylinders. It gives me extra opportunity to contribute to the team and lifts my confidence. If I'm bowling well, it transfers to my batting and vice-versa,"