New Delhi: Virat Kohli might see Hardik Pandya as Indian-version of Ben Stokes, but as far as Gautam Gambhir's evaluation is concerned, he believes that the youngster still has a long way to go before establishing himself as a proper all-rounder.
Padya has emerged as one of the most promising pace bowling all-rounders that Team India have found in a long time. His incredible hitting prowess along with the ability to bowl at almost all moments in the match has given the team much needed balance that they were devoid off till now.
While skipper Virat Kohli went on to compare Pandya to England's established all-rounder Stokes, Gambhir is of the opinion that the 23-year-old Indian still has a long way to go.
“Look, he's got to improve a lot, especially when it comes to his batting. You can't just play one way. At the moment, he can do that because you have your top three and four scoring runs for you. So, you have the platform to go out there and play the way you want to. But ultimately, you have to tighten your technique because the moment you lose two-three wickets early, with him batting at No. 6 or 7, he has to have a little bit of solidity.
“At the moment, according to me, he's not there yet. He needs to work a lot on his technical side. Maybe he can be an attacking option, but at the same time you need to have a solid technique for that as well. Right now, you can't compare his two or three innings because he has got the platform to play the way he wants to play,” Gambhir was quoted as saying by DNA.
Kohli, however, didn't take long in comparing Pandya with Stokes after witnessing his performance in the Galle Test.
"I have a lot of faith in him (Hardik) as far as any format is concerned. If he grows in confidence you see someone like Ben Stokes, what he does for England, brings in great balance as an all-rounder. I see no reason why Hardik Pandya can't become that for India," Kohli said at the post- match press conference in Galle.
