India’s star all-rounder Hardik Pandya has had quite a turnaround in fortunes of late. After enduring a disastrous season with Mumbai Indians in IPL 2021 and a dismal T20 World Cup for India, Hardik Pandya shocked everyone with his blockbuster comeback. He led debutants Gujarat Titans to their title victory in his first attempt as captain.
Hardik Pandya Made A Solid Comeback
Earlier, Mumbai Indians’ move to not retain Hardik ahead of the 2022 edition of the Indian Premier League didn’t go down well with the fans. Gujarat Titans, who were one of the two new teams entering the cash-rich league in the IPL 2022 took the opportunity and signed Pandya in the pre-auction draft for Rs. 15 crores and named him the captain.
Pandya enjoyed a dream run in his captaincy debut and also left a mark with the ball and the bat. They completed a fairytale season by lifting the prestigious trophy by defeating Rajasthan Royals by 7 wickets in the summit clash.
Ravi Shastri Revealed An Untold Story
Meanwhile, former Indian head-coach Ravi Shastri revealed an untold story about the star all-rounder. Shastri revealed how Pandya was shocked after Mumbai Indians decided to not retain him ahead of the IPL 2022. He revealed: “It shocked him when he was not retained by Mumbai Indians,”
“It was tough… MI had Ishan Kishan, Rohit Sharma, Jasprit Bumrah, Suryakumar Yadav, and Hardik Pandya so they had to pick three out of those five. Ishan Kishan was obviously picked in the auction,”
He added: “He was picked by Gujarat Titans, where he was given the extra responsibility of captaining, which did him a world of good. When given responsibility, he’s a completely different cricket as opposed to just batting and fielding,”
Impressed with his performances for Gujarat, Hardik Pandya was called up to the Indian side after starring for GT and he has replicated exactly the kind of performances, with late finishing and big-hitting, which makes him irreplaceable.
