'He's built partnerships with Dhoni down the order. He can also play at No.4': Bangar hails India's 'versatile player'

The star player recently made his return to the Indian team first the first time in seven months and has been picked for the ongoing five-match T20I series against South Africa.

Former India batting coach Sanjay Bangar was effusive in his praise for India's 28-year-old star, hailing him as an "extremely versatile player". The star player recently made his return to the Indian team first the first time in seven months and has been picked for the ongoing five-match T20I series against South Africa.

Sanjay Bangar; MS Dhoni

Hardik Pandya made a stellar comeback to cricket in the recently-concluded IPL 2022, where batted with responsibility up the order scoring big runs for Gujarat Titans and also picked wickets. His impressive return was rewarded with a India call-up for the first time since the 2021 T20 World Cup.

Speaking on the Star Sports show 'Follow the Blues', Bangar hailed Harik's versatility as a batter and felt that he can bat at No.4 for India and finish the matches as well as a lower-order batter.

"He is an extremely versatile player who has worked very well on his game's foundation. You can play him at No. 4 also and at No. 6 as well," he said.

"Whenever I used to talk to Hardik, he used to always say that he wants to have a good foundation, he always paid a lot of attention to that. That is a transformation. When your game is sorted out, you can mold your game according to every situation."

The former India batter also hailed Hardik's ability to finish off games, an experience he has gained after having many a partnerships with former India skipper MS Dhoni.

"He (Hardik) is a player who has played the finisher's role for a very long time for the Indian team. He has shared experiences and built partnerships with MS Dhoni and other lower-order batters. So I feel he is a versatile player," he said.