Former Pakistan batsman, Salman Butt made comments about Hardik Pandya's fitness and said that "he is so slim" that he "will keep getting unfit" if there is extra load on his body. It is a known fact that India depends a lot on Hardik Pandya for lower-order hitting. Even though Hardik has reduced the amount of bowling that he used to do, he still bowls a few overs in every match. This kind of performance needs fitness of another level.
Salman Butt thinks that Pandya lacks that kind of fitness to sustain in both batting and bowling. Although Butt believes that Pandya is very skillful, he thinks his fitness needs to be a notch higher than what it is right now.
“India had high hopes from Hardik Pandya, but he has been on a long layoff period. He looks very skillful when he bats. And when he was bowling before injury, he looked very effective with a decent pace.
But again, Hardik Pandya’s problem is that he is so slim, if there is extra load on his body, he will keep getting unfit," Salman Butt said as quoted by Hindustan Times.
Butt said that Pandya needs to manage the excess workload and gain some "muscle on his body".
"He needs some muscle on his body. Skill-wise, he has a lot of capacity to become better and better. The way he bats and bowls… he has a very good bowling action. But again, his body cannot take the excess workload. That is what needs to be managed," said Butt.
Finally, Salman Butt compared the fitness levels of Kapil Dev and Imran Khan, two of the greatest all-rounders not just in the subcontinent, but also worldwide.
“If you compare Hardik Pandya with Kapil Dev or Imran Khan, they were far fitter than him. You can watch their YouTube videos. They were double in size and had more muscle. I don’t know if there is any issue with Hardik Pandya’s physique. The physios and trainers must be definitely talking to him about it," he concluded.
Is it right to comment on anyone's physique like this? What do you think about Salman Butt's comments? Do let us know in the comments.