As Hardik Pandya eyes a place in India's T20 squad on the back of a superb IPL 2022 outing, former India head coach Ravi Shastri reckoned that Team India needs a pure all-rounder at the number six spot during the 2022 ICC T20 World Cup.
Meanwhile, Shastri also ruled out Hardik Pandya's inclusion in India's squad for T20 World Cup as a pure batter.
While talking to ESPNcricinfo, Shastri explained his reasoning and said that in the top five, there's a lot of firepower and if anyone wants to occupy the number 5 or 6 position then that guy needs to bring in something extra.
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"That is why it's extremely important that Hardik strings those two or three overs together because if he does and bowls with even limited success, he becomes an automatic choice in the Indian team," Shastri added.
Hardik Pandya will be leading Gujarat Titans in this year's IPL. He has not played any competitive cricket since last year's World T20.