India vs Australia 3rd ODI: ‘Don’t think I will bowl today,’ says Hardik Pandya after wreaking havoc in Canberra

Hardik Pandya showcased the damage he can do with the bat when he smashed 92 runs in 76 balls to help India to a total of 302/5 in 50 overs in the 3rd ODI against Australia in Canberra. The allrounder came on to bat when India lost Shreyas Iyer and KL Rahul in quick succession and India needed someone to put on a show to register a decent total on the board.

After Virat Kohli was dismissed for 61, it was up to Pandya and Ravindra Jadeja to stay till the 50 overs and help India to a good total. The duo added 150 runs as India went from 152/5 to 302/5.

India vs Australia 3rd ODI Live

After the match, Hardik was asked about why he was asked to bowl in the 2nd ODI - even though he has spoken publicly that he still does not feel fit to get back to bowling. In response, the allrounder said that he did it for the team, though, he added that he would not be bowling in Canberra.

“Had to fight it out in the middle, it wasn’t easy to start. When we had those couple of good overs and got some momentum we started believing,” Hardik Pandya said on Sony Network.

“We were probably thinking 250-270, but that’s the beauty of the game. When you try to score 70 you end up getting 90,” he added.

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“You gotta keep guessing in these conditions with bigger boundaries and I knew there were going to be plenty of short balls,” he further said.

“It was for the team (about bowling in the last game) not planned and it was a bit sore to be honest. Don’t think I’ll bowl today (chuckles),” he signed off.

India are playing the third ODI to salvage pride as Australia already have an unassailable 2-0 lead in the series.