"Hardik Pandya Is An Impact Player": IPL Winning Coach Praises All-Rounder Ahead Of Asia Cup

Former Australian cricketer Tom Moody said that flexibility is important in modern-day cricket and Team India may be required to throw someone like the all-rounder Hardik Pandya up the order. The Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) on Monday announced a strong 17-member squad for the upcoming Asia Cup which will begin on August 30 with Jasprit Bumrah, Shreyas Iyer, KL Rahul returning to the squad and Tilak Verma also getting a place in the team. Speaking exclusively to ESPNCricinfo, Moody spoke on Rohit Sharma's statement concerning flexibility in the line-up.

"Well, I think in this day and age, whether it be 50-over cricket or 20-over cricket, you need to have an open mind. You need to be flexible, and we talk a lot about match-ups. At times, we talk too much about match-ups in the media, so I think that is where I think Rohit Sharma is coming from. You know, there may be a case where you might have a left-hander that is due to come out at number 6, then suddenly the opposition brings out a left-arm spinner or a leg spinner. So, therefore, that number 6 is going to be the next person to come into bat," he said.

"Now, the thing that is really important from a team's point of view, you have that flexibility and open mind, and I think that is what he was trying to articulate to the media there. Yes, there will be flexibility, but there are a couple of places that may not be moving because really the foundation of your innings needs to be concrete, you need stability there and role clarity there. But, you know, Hardik Pandya is an impact player. There may be a time you need to throw him up the order just to get the innings moving quicker than what it has been moving. So, all those tactical nuances, you need to have