Hardik Pandya reached the milestone of 50 wickets in his T20I career after dismissing Brandon King in the 3rd T20I against West Indies and with that completed an incredible double in the format, which placed him alongside Pakistan legend Shahid Afridi.
India all-rounder Hardik Pandya on Tuesday achieved a sensational feat during the third T20I match of the ongoing five-match series against West Indies in St Kitts.
Hardik Pandya Picks His 50th T20I Scalp Becoming 6th Indian Bowler To Do So
Hardik Pandya achieved the feat during the eighth over of the game. Hardik Pandya deceived Brandon King with a slower delivery on a good length. Brandon King looked to play it across but mistimed it as the ball took a big inside edge and sent his leg-stump cartwheeling. Brandon King was dismissed for 20 off 20 as Hardik Pandya drew first blood for India.
It was Hardik Pandya’s 50th wicket for India, becoming the sixth bowler for the country to reach the milestone in T20I cricket. Yuzvendra Chahal, Bhuvneshwar Kumar, Jasprit Bumrah, Ravichandran Ashwin, and Ravindra Jadeja are the other bowlers who completed the feat with the wrist-spinner Yuzvendra Chahal leading the tally with 79 scalps.
Hardik Pandya 9th Cricketer Among Full Member Nations To Complete 500 Runs, 50 Wickets Double In T20Is
With Hardik Pandya also having 802 runs in his career in T20I cricket, the all-rounder became the ninth cricketer to complete the double of 500 runs and 50 wickets in the format among players of full-member nations.
The other 8 include – Shakib Al Hasan (Bangladesh), Shahid Afridi (Pakistan), Dwayne Bravo (West Indies), George Dockrell (Ireland), Mohammad Nabi (Afghanistan), Mohammad Hafeez (Pakistan), Kevin O’Brien (Ireland), and Thisara Perera (Sri Lanka).
Talking about the match, India won the toss and opted to bowl first in the third T20I match of the series. India had lost the second match on Monday at the same venue by five wickets, which helped the hosts level the series at 1-1. India had earlier won the opener by 68 runs in Trinidad last week.
Among the men’s players to achieve the double, the India all-rounder is the latest player to make his T20I debut, having first played for India in 2016. Hardik Pandya has been in good form with the ball in white-ball cricket and has already taken four wickets in ODIs and T20Is twice this year.
The India all-rounder bowled a tough spell against West Indies on Tuesday as he conceded just 19 runs in his four overs taking a wicket. Kyle Meyers’ 73 and useful cameos from Rovman Powell and Shimron Hetmyer took the hosts to a strong total of 164 for the loss of five wickets in the allotted 20 overs. During the match, Bhuvneshwar Kumar took two and Arshdeep Singh also took one wicket.
Suryakumar Yadav’s scintillating 76-run knock was complemented by Rishabh Pant’s mature unbeaten 33 as India beat West Indies by 7 wickets in the 3rd T20I to go 2-1 in the 5-match series. Chasing 165 for victory, India crossed the finish line with 6 balls to spare.