Hardik Pandya Eyes Bowling At Full Tilt In T20 World Cup

All-rounder Hardik Pandya has said that he is looking forward to bowling in every match of the T20 World Cup, which is scheduled to be played in October-November this year. The pace bowler could not m

"For India, I have realised that my bowling brings a lot of difference because the balance changes," said Pandya, who did not bowl even a single over for Mumbai Indians (MI) in the suspended IPL 2021.

"I have to make sure I am fit to be able to bowl and if I bowl, that brings balance to the side. "Whenever I play, I don't want to play at 50%. When I play, I will play at 100%," he added. Even though he didn't bowl for MI, Pandya rolled his arm over in the limited-overs games for India against England in March this year.

He bowled 17 overs in the five T20 Internationals, picking three wickets and conceding runs at 6.94 an over which was the second best on either side after Bhuvneshwar Kumar. Pandya also bowled in the third and final ODI against England and was quite economical, conceding runs at 5.33 in nine overs.

The 27-year-old, who has played 60 ODIs and 48 T20 Internationals, said the tour of Sri Lanka has come as a surprise. "When I heard that we are going to Sri Lanka, I was planning to take rest for 3-4 weeks and just not do anything. I was on the road for seven to eight months and for those months, I was preparing myself for one-and-a-half years," he said.

"For the Sri Lanka tour, I started my preparation from Saturday. Focus is on getting ready for Sri Lanka and then obviously, the World Cup."