Naman Dhir hit 24 not out off six balls in the rain-hit fifth T20I against the West Indies in Bengaluru on 17 October. Afterwards, Aakash Chopra said on Star Sports that he sees glimpses of Hardik Pandya in the way Dhir bats. Rain ended the match at 118/5 after 7.4 overs, and the series finished 2-2.
India were 88/4 when skipper Shreyas Iyer fell at the start of the seventh over. Dhir walked in at No. 6 and hit his first ball for six. He took two sixes and a four off Keemo Paul, then cleared the rope against Shamar Springer. It was another big moment for a player whose call-up as Washington Sundar’s replacement came only weeks ago.
Height and reach are what fans saw. What Chopra pointed to is quieter, and it explains how a batter can attack from the very first delivery.
“This guy (Naman Dhir) has hitting ability. He is tall, has a long reach, and uses the long levers well. I see slight glimpses of Hardik Pandya. You get that kind of feeling when he bats. He makes a big base, remains extremely stable, and uses his hands extremely well.”
Aakash Chopra, Star Sports, after the fifth T20I,17 October 2026
Aakash Chopra feels Naman Dhir has glimpses of Hardik Pandya! 🇮🇳🗣️
#India #T20Is #HardikPandya #Sportskeeda https://t.co/3jwvZEXfSw
— Sportskeeda (@Sportskeeda) October 18, 2026
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A batter who walks in during the seventh over of a nine-over game gets no sighters. Most batters need a small trigger movement to find their balance before the ball arrives, and under pressure that movement is where timing breaks. A wide, still base removes it: the head is already set and only the hands have to move. That is how Dhir could hit Paul from ball one.
The same base decides what a batter can reach without falling over. Dhir flat-batted a short, wide slower ball down the ground and dug a wide yorker out to mid-off. Both balls punish a batter whose feet are still moving. Reach is the obvious part, but the stillness is the Hardik trait, and it is the hardest one to learn late.
Where the Hardik Comparison Stops
Chopra’s comparison is about batting. Hardik’s place in India’s side was also built on his seam bowling, and Dhir bowls off-spin. That difference sits at the centre of India’s pace all-rounder problem.
Dhir’s off-spin has still been a weapon. He took 3/31 on his T20I debut in Lucknow and had five wickets after three games, the most by an Indian bowler in the series at that point. Every one of those wickets came the ball after he was hit for six.
His batting sample is thin. In Indore he made 10 off 5, and in Hyderabad he fell for a golden duck. Dhir has said he wants to become a genuine all-rounder, but for now he wants to score more runs with the bat.
After the same match, Sunil Gavaskar argued on JioStar that India should stop searching for a like-for-like Hardik. His view was to pick a player who does a different job, and he named Dhir as one already doing it. That fits the wider debate over how deep India should bat.
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