India vs Pakistan: Hardik Pandya ending the all-rounder conversation in style

India showed they mean business in this ICC Champions Trophy 2017, swatting away any worries of a possible "rift" between coach Anil Kumble and captain Virat Kohli by putting in a professional performance against Pakistan in their opening match of the tournament on Sunday.

This was a game that only one team looked like winning and the fact that India were so convincing against their biggest rivals will certainly give them more confidence as they look to hold on to the title they won four years ago.

While India were confident even heading into this game against Pakistan, there were a lot of questions about team selection.

With Kohli spoilt for choice in the fast bowling department at the moment, the question was if the India captain would go with two pacers or three.

There were also question marks on whether Hardik Pandya would find a place in the playing XI, with India maybe going in with five pure bowlers instead of four and the all-rounder.

In the end, Kohli went with three pacers and a spinner, while backing the all-round skills of Pandya, and that proved to be the right call. Pandya put in just the kind of all-round performance you want to see from the 23-year-old in every match.

When India needed sixes and fours in the last couple of overs, Pandya, sent in ahead of MS Dhoni and Kedar Jadhav, did just that, smacking the left-arm spinner Imad Wasim for three maximums in a row in the final over, which completely deflated Pakistan.

He then backed that brilliant last-over assault up by bowling eight solid overs, while managing to pick up two wickets as well, including the prized one of the Pakistan captain Sarfraz Ahmed.

For someone playing his first match in England, this was a pretty good effort. What Pandya cannot do, though, is rest on his Edgbaston-against-Pakistan laurels. He needs to take the confidence from this performance and run with it, all the way to the final.

Because if India are to be successful in the ICC Champions Trophy 2017, they need Pandya to fire with bat and ball, particularly with in the latter discipline.

Balance is the key to everything in the limited-overs formats of the game, and what Pandya provides is just that – balance.

He gives Kohli the option of playing one pure bowler less, while also knowing that the batting lineup is long and strong, which in turn allows the top order to bat more freely.

Having that license to go slam-bang whenever you want is a great one to have – just look at England, and why they have been so successful in this format of late – and Pandya gives India that luxury.

As long as he keeps bowling well, gets those seven or eight overs – India can use Kedar Jadhav and Yuvraj Singh as well to chip in with a few – Kohli will be happy and India will continue their march to the final.

All the Pakistan wickets that fell