When Indian all-rounder Hardik Pandya was appointed as the captain of Gujarat Titans, it raised a lot of eyebrows. However, Pandya proved everyone wrong with his efficiency as the leader of the side. Under his leadership, the Titans won the title in their first-ever attempt.
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Indian Premier League 2022 was Pandya’s first competitive tournament after he missed several international series due to form and fitness concerns post ICC T20 World Cup 2021. There were a lot of doubts over Pandya’s fitness, but the franchise trusted the player and drafted him as their first choice ahead of the auction.
Pandya was absolutely spot-on with his captaincy and managed his workload as well. He scored 487 runs at an average of 44.27, where he scored four half-centuries. With the ball, he had eight dismissals under his belt. Following IPL 2022, Pandya is now the vice-captain of India in both white-ball formats and has an excellent record as captain at the highest level.
Ashish Nehra Reveals Why Gujarat Titans Picked Hardik Pandya as Captain Before IPL 2022
Titans head coach Ashish Nehra recently appeared on GK meets GT Podcast with host Gaurav Kapur. Being asked about the reason why Gujarat opted to go with Pandya as captain despite him not having any kind of leadership experience, Nehra just pointed out some basic qualities of an all-rounder.
Nehra said that they knew that Pandya can’t be dropped from the Playing XI, and it was the first basic requirement for naming a captain. He lauded Pandya by saying that in spite of being the captain, he had no ego issues. According to Nehra, Pandya was always ready to listen to his coaches and that was his biggest strength last season.
“We know what kind of player he has been. Aapke paas agar aisa captain hai you are sure ki bhai ye jo player hai ye toh hamesha rahega gyarah mai [If you have a captain who always deserves a spot in the Playing XI]. According to me, it was a no-brainer,” Nehra answered.
“It was a very easy choice. The best thing about Hardik [Pandya] was that he was ready to listen to us, ready to do conversations with Gary Kirsten, etc. Usko pata tha ki [He knew that] all these guys are here to help. This was the most important thing.”
Hardik Pandya IPL record
Pandya has certainly come a long way since making his IPL debut for MI. He was bought by Mumbai Indians in the 2015 auction for INR 10 lakh, whereas he was drafted in by Gujarat Titans last season for INR 15 crores.
In 101 innings, Pandya has scored 1,971 runs at an average of 29.86 with the help of eight half-centuries. He has a brilliant strike rate of 149.68. With the ball, however, he has scalped 50 wickets and is yet to do justice with his ability.
