"Ben Stokes Is Ahead Of Hardik": Says Ex-Pakistan Captain, Lists Out Reasons

Hardik Pandya is a crucial cog in India's scheme of things for the T20 World Cup. In the first T20I against Australia, that India lost by four wickets, Hardik Pandya's batting was a big plus. While veterans like Virat Kohli and Rohit Sharma failed to hit big, Pandya scored 71* - his highest score in T20Is after 52 innings. Then he bowled two overs, giving away 22 runs. Former India coach Ravi Shastri thinks that Pandya is the no. 1 T20I allrounder in the world. However, former Pakistan cricket team captain Rashid Latif feels that Ben Stokes is ahead of Hardik as allrounder.

"There's no doubt that he (Hardik) is a very good player, but it's a bilateral series. You see such innings in bilateral series. The Asia Cup concluded recently, and you have to count those performances too. I'm not talking about today's (Tuesday) match, but Ben Stokes is proven. He won the World Cup and he won Test matches for England," Latif said in a video on YouTube channel 'Caught Behind'.

"So, I don't think you can even compare when it comes to (performances) on the ground. Because a trophy is a trophy. World Cup or Test matches, Ben Stokes is ahead of Hardik in that. Having said that, yes, some of Hardik's innings have been better than Ben Stokes. But having better innings and being better than Stokes are two completely different things."

India and Pakistan start their T20 World Cup with a game against each other on October 23.