England vs India: Ian Chappell advises Hardik Pandya to learn from Ben Stokes

Former Australian captain Ian Chappell feels that although Hardik Pandya is yet to unleash his true potential as a true all-rounder, he could take some cues from Ben Stokes’ bowling in the first Test at Edgbaston, which could define his career.

Pandya who was the last man out in the second innings of the first Test, which India lost by 31 runs, couldn’t do much with the ball, going wicketless in the 10 overs he bowled in the match. He, however, proved to be a little handy with the bat scoring 22 and 31 to take India close to a victory.

“India’s search for a seam-bowling all-rounder is still a work in progress but Hardik Pandya displayed determination and discipline to go with his undoubted skills in an important partnership with Kohli,” wrote Chappell in his column for ESPN Cricinfo.

“Perhaps a move to No 6 would further bolster his batting confidence and if he can also profit from watching Stokes’ efforts with the ball, this could be a defining series for the talented all-rounder,” added Chappell.

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The ICC Cricket Hall of Famer was full of praise for Indian skipper Virat Kohli and compared his innings of 149 to Stan McCabe’s epic double hundred during the 1938 Ashes, which was appreciated even by Sir Don Bradman.

“Having survived Anderson’s challenging examination Kohli went on to dominate the Indian first innings, scoring 82 of the 91 runs accumulated for the last two wickets.

“It was a similar dominance near the end of Stan McCabe’s glorious double-century at Trent Bridge in 1938 that caused captain Don Bradman to summon his players onto the balcony with the words; “You will never see anything like this again,” said the former right-hander.

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He was however highly critical of slip fielding by both the teams in the opening Test and called it shoddy.

‘Both England and India were sloppy in the slips, with a combination of poor technique and faulty alignment being to blame for the shoddy work. One reason for both sides dropping catches is that the fielders are standing too close to each other, thereby causing confusion,” observed the 74-year-old who himself was a brilliant slip fielder during his playing days.