‘Captaincy is fun’: Hardik Pandya after leading Gujarat to another impressive win
Hardik Pandya (image source : BCCI)
Gujarat is having a brilliant team in the Indian T20 League 2022. They have won four of their first five matches and are at the top of the points table. In their latest win against Rajasthan, it was an all-round performance from their skipper, Hardik Pandya that took them to a comfortable victory.
In the 24th match of the tournament, Rajasthan decided to field first after winning the toss. Gujarat was in a spot of bother in the initial stages of their innings. But Pandya played a brilliant counter-attacking brand of cricket. With the support of Abhinav Manohar and David Miller, the Gujarat skipper took his team to a formidable total of 192 runs.
His brilliant exploits were not limited to his performance with the bat only. In the second innings, Pandya displayed his brilliance on the field as he effected the run out of the opposition skipper, Sanju Samson.
During the post-match presentation when asked about his time as the leader of the Gujarat team, Pandya said – “Captaincy is fun and it allows me to take responsibility and be the flag-bearer. The group carries one another. My moto was I wanted everyone to be happy.”
Hardik withdrew himself from bowling during the 18th over Rajasthan’s innings in the match. The fans feared an aggravation of his old injury but he cleared the air saying – “A lot of hard work for me tonight. It was just cramps, nothing serious.”
“ I am not used to batting this long. It gives me a lot of time. I can calculate and take risks. In the last game it did not come off but today I made sure I did. I have been in this situation where I have taken the role of scoring 12-ball 30. It is difficult but now at four I can control the game,”- Pandya said on his batting position for Gujarat in the tournament.
