“I always placed him above other legends”: Why Hardik Pandya reckons Wasim Jaffer as his favourite cricketer?

Hardik Pandya reckons Wasim Jaffer as the one cricketer he has always looked up to while growing up ahead of the South Africa series.

Out of the on-field action since the 2021 T20 World Cup last year, all-rounder Hardik Pandya announced his arrival in competitive Cricket in some style, as he not only led the Gujarat Titans (GT) to their maiden IPL title in their debut season, but also shone with the bat, finishing the dream run as the team’s highest run-getter.

His all-round show with both bat and the ball even earned him the ‘Player of the match’ award during the IPL 2022 grand finale against the Rajasthan Royals (RR), making him only the third captain ever to win the award in an IPL final.

Moreover, his impressive performance also fittingly earned him a call back in the team India squad for the imminent five-match home T20I series against South Africa.

During a recent interaction however, the 28-year-old made an interesting revelation as to which cricketer he always looked up to while growing up.

Hardik Pandya reckons Wasim Jaffer as his favourite cricketer

During an interaction with the SG Podcast, the flamboyant all-rounder named former team India opening batter Wasim Jaffer as his favourite cricketer.

While Pandya admitted to have likeness for the greats of the game like Sachin Tendulkar, Jacques Kallis, Virat Kohli et al, it is the legendary batter from Mumbai who had caught his attention the most amidst the well-renowned stars.

“Like everyone, I had favourite cricketers. I liked Jacques Kallis, Virat, Sachin sir. There are so many greats that you can’t pick. My favourite cricketer was actually Wasim Jaffer. I used to love watching him bat. Someone I always placed him above other legends. Somehow, I used to copy his batting, but I was never able to get his class,” Hardik revealed on the SG podcast.

Jaffer is fondly remembered by the ardent Indian Cricket fans, primarily for his double hundreds against West Indies and Pakistan, and his magnificent ton against a top-quality South African bowling line-up in Cape Town (2007).

A domestic giant as well, the former classy right-hander had, a couple of years ago, even went on to become the first player in Ranji Trophy history to score 12,000 runs in the competition for Mumbai and Vidarbha.