Hardik Pandya finishes off in style with Dhoni-esque helicopter shot

When the term helicopter comes to the fore, the first name that strikes the mind is Mahendra Singh Dhoni. He is known to be the one who popularized the shot, which requires an immense power of the wrists and the same is hard to generate for every other batsman. And then the swivel of willow, lending style and momentum to the stroke. The shot is usually played to deal with a yorker-length delivery.

Hard to master, but a lethal weapon to neutralize the balls shot at the toes. Indian all-rounder Hardik Pandya has carved a reputation for being a fierce striker of the leather. He packs a punch and takes no half-measures while winding up for an ambitious shot. On Wednesday at the Malahide Cricket Ground in Dublin, he gave a glimpse of the helicopter shot in the final of India’s innings in Dublin.

Pandya’s display of power

Peter Chase, Ireland’s standout bowler for the match, was in operation. In the penultimate delivery of the innings, he achieved the unfathomable, dismissing Virat Kohli for a duck, something bowlers dream of. His confidence skyrocketed with the fourth and the prized scalp. In the same over, he also dashed Rohit Sharma’s hopes of a century apart from nipping out Dhoni.

Chase went for the toe-crusher next, it didn’t come out of the hands as per his wishes. An attempted Yorker turned out to be a juicy half-volley and Pandya’s eyes would’ve lit up on seeing the delicious delight. He cleared his front leg, which helped him get under the ball, most importantly get full leverage of his arms. The leather found the middle of the willow and had enough force to trace over the ropes.

The pacer immediately turned back to see where the ball had gone. Unfortunately for him, it didn’t land inside the field of play. He was shocked by the display of raw power from Pandya. He would also have been disappointed for the reason that after conceding one run in the first five balls, he couldn’t end the over on an impressive note. On the contrary, Hardik’s stroke summed up the Blue Army’s dominance over their opponents.

Here’s the video of the blow:   

Look at the shot 👌
Wow 😘😘😘#HardikPandya @hardikpandya7#Power_of_Pandya #IREvIND
Video by – #SonyTen3 pic.twitter.com/MzATw9Jt6Y

— Hardik Pandya fan™️ (@FanPandya) June 27, 2018

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