Irfan Pathan has said comparisons between Hardik Pandya and Kapil Dev need to stop as he believes it will put undue pressure on the 23-year-old all-rounder.
There is none better than Pathan, who could open up about the burden of expectations. The left-arm pacer from Baroda took international cricket by storm when he made his debut at the age of 19 during India's famous win over Australia in Adelaide in 2003.
Pathan had the lethal ability to swing the ball both ways and the then 19-year-old troubled established batsmen early in his career. The 2006 tour of Pakistan was one of the major milestones in his career as he was all but unplayable.
The Baroda all-rounder was seen as a possible successor to Kapil, but injuries and inconsistent performances made it difficult for him to fulfil the promise he had showed.
'First Pandya'
"I think he will be the first Hardik Pandya! Let's not compare him with anyone. Let's give him some time. Let's not push too much pressure on him. Let him play freely because that way growth is bound to happen," Pathan spoke of India's new-found sensation Pandya, as quoted by the "Press Trust of India".
Pandya's meteoric rise
Pandya rose to prominence during Indian Premier League (IPL) 2015 when he showcased his big-hitting ability and handy medium-pace bowling to the world in Mumbai Indians (MI) colours.
The young all-rounder though has grown into an indispensable member of the Indian team with his consistent performances in the recent past. His performances in the Champions Trophy and the tour to West Indies that followed the ICC event forced skipper Virat Kohli and the team management to hand him a Test cap during India's tour to Sri Lanka in August-September.
Pandya repaid the faith his captain showed in him by smashing his maiden Test century in the third and final Test of the three-match series in the island nation.
With two match-winning performances in the ongoing ODI series against Australia, Pandya has clearly taken his game to the next level.
The ability he has shown in adapting to different situations is also taking the pressure off MS Dhoni, who for long had shouldered the responsibility of the finisher in the team.
Pathan lauds Kohli's captaincy
Pathan, who last played for India in 2012, highlighted the positives of having the captain's backing before crediting Kohli and the team management for the rise of Pandya.
"Virat is backing all the youngsters, not only one or two. If you have the backing of captain and team management, the player will perform eventually. Rohit [Sharma] got the backing of Mahi bhai [Dhoni] consistently and now look at him, he is now one of the best batsmen in the world," Pathan said.
He added: "For any player's rise, not just Hardik's, the backing of captain plays a huge role. Kedar Jadhav for example was doing fantastically well in domestic cricket for so many years but he got the backing only under Virat."
