Indian all–rounder Krunal Pandya is sweating it out along with other teammates in Chennai for the upcoming edition of the Indian Premier League. As the team gears up to kick off their IPL 2021 against Virat Kohli-led Royal Challengers Bangalore later this week, Krunal was indulged in a candid chat on Twitter.
Krunal impressed one and all after he made a terrific debut in the recently-concluded 3-match ODI series against England, which India won by 2-1. Krunal scored 95 runs in three games, including a 31-ball 51 in his debut innings.
Ahead of the much-awaited 2021 edition of the Indian Premier League, the all-rounder remembered his father Himanshu Pandya, who passed away in January this year.
A video of the interaction was shared by the official social media account of Mumbai Indians. where Krunal expressed his feelings and said that he feels his father’s presence with him whenever he does well on-field. He said:
“It has been a difficult last 2 months because of what happened with Dad (passing away). One thing which I’ve realised is the life that we (Krunal and Hardik) have got as a family… a lot of hard work, sacrifices and struggle has been done by that man.”
He added:
“So we just say that ‘hum log sirf phal kha rahe seeds basically unhe ne dal le aur grow kiye’ (we are just the seeds of the fruit and were nurtured by our father), and now when he is not there, and so many good things are happening, you just feel that somewhere down the line a part of my heart has gone with him,”
Furthermore, in the video, Krunal revealed the last words of his father for him. He revealed how his father used to motivate him and ow he feel his presence with him. He said:
“Yes, people say time heals everything but what I feel is from here on whatever good things I do in life I’ll always remember him. Just 2 days before he passed away (16th (January), on the 14th of January he called me after seeing one of my innings in the Syed Mushtaq Ali Trophy, which was in Baroda. He said, ‘I’ve seen your knock, I’ve seen you play from the age of 6… But one thing I’ll tell you, after watching this knock is that your time will come now.”
He added:
“So, I was just joking around… I said, ‘Dad, I’ve been playing for the last 5 years, I’ve played for India and done well. We just won the IPL (2020) trophy.’ He said, ‘Whatever you have done till now is fine but your time will come’. These were his last words to me. And then, he went away after 2 days. Somewhere down the line, I feel that his presence is there with me. It’s difficult, I feel every day that he is there. I miss him, in a good way. He was full of life in our family,”
Here, watch the video:
?️ “Me and Hardik are just reaping the fruits of his efforts.” @krunalpandya24 opens up on the influence of his father in #MI catch-up! #OneFamily #MumbaiIndians #IPL2021 pic.twitter.com/479vh912iH
— Mumbai Indians (@mipaltan) April 5, 2021
