India finally produced their best performance in the ongoing West Indies tour to clinch the third ODI with a 200-run win on Tuesday, August 1. After a surprising team selection in the first game and an embarrassing defeat in the second, the Men in Blue pulled off an all-round impressive performance in the decisive game to avoid a series loss.
Hardik Pandya led the team in the last two games with regular skipper Rohit Sharma being given the rest. Hardik struggled to make an impact with both bat and ball in the first two matches but smashed 70* off 52 with the help of four fours and five sixes to help India score a total of 351 runs while batting first in Tarouba.
This was Hardik's first 30-plus score in his last overall 10 innings. Hardik looked relieved to gain some rhythm back ahead of the upcoming five T20Is against the Caribbean team. After the game, Hardik revealed that he had a chat with Virat Kohli, who was given rest in the last two games, and said that the former captain advised him to spend more time at the crease to gain the momentum.
"Had a wonderful chat with Virat a few days back. He had some great pointers. He wanted me to spend some time on the crease. That kind of stayed in my mind. I was just waiting to get the opportunity and once I got the rhythm I could get going. When I get one ball out of the middle, things become very different. I have seen that throughout my career," Hardik Pandya said during the post-match presentation.
Once again, the 29-year-old pace all-rounder highlighted Rohit and Kohli's absence from the third ODI and said that the youngsters like Ruturaj Gaikwad and Axar Patel needed to be given some match exposure.
"Virat and Rohit are very integral parts of the team. But this was very important for players like Rutu or Axar to get a game. So giving youngsters the exposure and making sure that if we want to check something," Hardik added.
