Pallekele, Aug 14: Before Sunday’s hundred, Hardik Pandya’s highest score in first-class cricket was 90 and he doesn’t even remember the last time he managed a three-figure score.
“I scored in Under-19… I am 24 now, no (I am) 23,” he said when asked if had scored a hundred before. “So some four-five years back, I scored my hundred. Actually I don’t remember when I scored the hundred,” he laughed.
This confusion was hardly there when he was out there in the middle, sending one ball after the other soaring over the boundary rope and into the stands. Playing only his third Test innings after making his debut in the first Test at Galle, where he struck a half-century, Pandya brought up his maiden ton against all expectations. India were down 421 for nine with only Umesh Yadav as company for Pandya who was exactly on a 61-ball 50.
Shami was dismissed in the 115th over and the next over by Malinda Pushpakumara changed the course of the innings. Pandya looted 26 runs (4, 4, 6, 6, 6, 0) off that over and before he knew, he was on the cusp of a hundred.
“It just happened, honestly I didn’t want to go all out in that over but I don’t know what happened,” Pandya said, reflecting on the over. “Maybe I was connecting pretty well, (so I told myself) ‘let me try this over’ and I scored 26 runs. It feels obviously good. From there, I saw the score board and I was batting on 80 and I was like, wow! Then I noticed I was in the zone, I don’t usually look at the score board, I don’t want to know what’s happening around. I just focus on how I can help the innings progress.”
With Lanka having stationed most of their fielders on the fence, Pandya had to clear the long boundary and he did so on seven occasions. Did he take that (field spread) as a challenge?
“Could there have been a bigger opportunity than that,” Pandya replied. “Nine wickets were already down and I knew, if stay in the crease and connect the ball well, it would go for six. Even if I were to mishit, I had to. I had no choice. It was an ideal opportunity and obviously there was a team’s goal and which was to give them (Lanka) a 400-run target and we scored close to 490. I was taking calculated risk,” he analysed.
Though it was his first century, Pandya said he wasn’t nervous in the 90s. “First time in my life I have not had the 90s’ butterfly,” he emphasised. “Otherwise – I don’t remember previous centuries – but I used to have butterflies from what I can remember. In today’s game – I have said earlier as well -- when I bat, I am in a different zone. When I bat, I don’t think about my personal scores and achievements. It has helped me enough. One thing I learned from Mahi bhai (MS Dhoni) is that you always put your team ahead, see the scoreboard and play accordingly. That has helped me throughout,” he offered.
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