Hardik Pandya swears by living life king size and that exuberance finds expression in his powerful hitting in the middle order and brisk seam bowling. He first caught the eye with an unbeaten 31-ball 61 for Mumbai Indians against Kolkata Knight Riders in IPL 2015, but displayed greater consistency in the Syed Mushtaq Ali domestic T20 tournament in January 2016. He finished as the leading run-getter, for Baroda, with 377 runs in 10 innings at an average of 53.85.

Pandya also took 10 wickets and was instrumental in Baroda making the final. He was subsequently called up for India's limited-overs tour to Australia, where he made his international debut, before impressing with the ball on the seamer-friendly pitches in Bangladesh at the Asia Cup. Pandya appeared to be the answer to India's search for a seam-bowling allrounder, and with his sprightly fielding complementing his main skill-sets, he sealed his spot in India's 2016 World T20 squad. While Pandya batted only twice in the tournament, he had a lot more to do with the ball. He bowled the last over against Bangladesh and defended two runs off three balls to help India to a one-run win. A little more than a week after his heroics, Pandya endured the disappointment of bowling a no ball to reprieve Lendl Simmons, whose unbeaten innings helped West Indies clinch the semi-final.
ESPNcricinfo staff