India vs Australia: There is pressure in the middle order, says Manish Pandey

Pandey didn’t have ideal outings in the first two matches but was back among the runs with an unbeaten 36 in the five-wicket win in Indore. He played at the no.4 position in Chennai and Kolkata before losing the spot to Hardik Pandya who was promoted up the order in Indore. With KL Rahul warming the bench, and likely to be tested at the same position, competition for the middle-order spots is very intense at the moment.

“It is completely different when you are playing number three, four or six. It is all about the mindset. It is about aggressiveness. I would like to spend more time on the wicket to make myself feel at ease at the crease,” he said.

India outplayed Australia in the first three ODIs but Pandey says they remain a tough opposition and also shared his views about Harbhajan Singh’s jibe.

“I think it is his own views about cricket. I think Australia is a fairly good side which boasts of quality batsmen. It is this series where they have lost matches on the trot. Nevertheless, they are a team to beat,” said Pandey.

What’s going wrong for Australia? Pandey said it’s their middle-order not getting runs.

“I think they are doing really well, but some of the things are not clicking for them. Their top order is getting runs, but not the middle order,” he said. On the other hand, India are doing well in all the departments, he said.