'Problem is that he is so slim': Salman Butt says India all-rounder 'needs more muscle on his body' to stay fit

Whenever India all-rounder Hardik Pandya plays, he shoulders heavy responsibility in the lower-middle order. Be it his batting, bowling, or fielding, Pandya is an important part of the set-up. However, and due to injuries and surgeries, the bowling aspect from his game has been missing. And that, unfortunately, has resulted in other players getting a go-ahead of him. So, what does he need to do to start bowling at full-throttle again? Salman Butt answers.

Former Pakistan captain Butt feels that Pandya's main problem is that he is very slim and after recuperating, his body isn't able to handle the extra load of his bowling. Hence, he feels that Pandya should focus on building muscle.

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“India had high hopes from Hardik Pandya, but he has been on a long layoff period. He looks very skilful when he bats. And when he was bowling before injury, he looked very effective with decent pace. But again, Hardik Pandya’s problem is that he is so slim, if there is extra load on his body, he will keep getting unfit."

"He needs some muscle on his body. Skill-wise, he has a lot of capacity to become better and better. The way he bats and bowls… he has a very good bowling action. But again, his body cannot take the excess workload. That is what needs to be managed.”

Butt cited the examples of Kapil Dev and Imran Khan to explain why it is important to have a strong body structure to fulfil all-round duties. The former Pakistan batter added:

“If you compare Hardik Pandya with Kapil Dev or Imran Khan, they were far fitter than him. You can watch their YouTube videos. They were double in size, and had more muscle. I don’t know if there is any issue with Hardik Pandya’s physique. The physios and trainers must be definitely talking to him about it.”