Veteran cricketer Sachin Tendulkar feels that both Virat Kohli and Hardik Pandya deserved the Man of the Match award in the third Test at Trent Bridge, Nottingham on Wednesday.
India made an impressive comeback by defeating England by 203 runs.
India's cornered cricketers produced a fantastic collective performance to outclass England including Virat Kohli's 200 runs in two innings and Hardik Pandya's five wickets in the first innings.
Kohli won Man of the Match award while many argued that Pandya too deserved the award. Tendulkar, however, felt that both Kohli and Pandya should share the award.
During a live streaming session on his app 100MB, Tendulkar said, "I would have made them share the award. Both players played important roles in India’s victory. Both of Virat Kohli’s innings was very significant. The first innings helped give India a strong foundation and the century in the second innings ensured that India set an improbable target. At the same time, I feel that Hardik also played an important role, especially in the first innings.”
Virat Kohli missed his century in the first innings at 97 runs off 152 balls. India stood at 329 after the first innings. Pandya, on the other hand, scored 52 runs off 52 balls in the second innings. He also bagged five significant wickets in the first innings, contributing to his overall performance.
Pandya managed to get one wicket in the second wicket.
“His five wickets were critical. Players like Joe Root, Jonny Bairstow are in-form batsman, and to dismiss them early was vital. He even scored a quick-fire fifty in the second innings to take the target beyond 500. Eventually, it comes down to a matter of opinion,” Tendulkar added.
India is now looking forward to the fourth match of the series at Southampton.
