Gujarat Titan Hardik Pandya, from debilitating back pain to IPL 2022 win
When Shubhman Gill smashed a six off Obed McCoy’s final ball of IPL 2022, the stadium erupted with joy. But in the stands, stood a calm and composed Hardik Pandya, who just gave a smile and shook hands with his head coach Ashish Nehra and mentor Gary Kirsten.
After the match, he gave a hug to his wife Natasha Stankovic. The moist eyes of his wife showed how much Pandya had suffered in the last 2-3 years because of his lower back injury.
IPL 2022
The IPL 2022 journey was a challenge for Pandya, who didn't perform well in the last two seasons. His injury prevented him from bowling during thelast two seasons. With the bat also, he couldn’t deliver much. He was released by the Mumbai Indians franchise, but Gujarat Titans franchise offered him the captaincy and bagged him at Rs 15 crore.
And then, magically, Pandya led the team in a way nobody had expected. Captaincy seemed to have brought the best out of his game as his batting and bowling improved.
In the final match of the IPL 2022, Pandya scalped 3 wickets conceding just 17 runs. He was fast and determined with the ball. With the bat also, he had 487 runs in 16 matches with an average of 44.27 and a strike rate of 131.26. In total, he clinched eight wickets.
Veteran Indian cricketer Sunil Gavaskar lauded Pandya for his amazing performance this IPL. Gavaskar had commended Pandya for his shot selection and his usage of field restrictions during the powerplay.
Throughout the season, Pandya led the team from the front. He was in fact, the only captain who changed the norm of bowling first after winning the toss and instead chose to bat first. This set a precedent for other 9 captains, who also started batting first.
He got a tremendous support from Rashid Khan, David Miller, Shubhman Gill and rest of the players. Gujarat Titans won 12 out of 16 matches, losing only 4.
In the end, the team won the trophy.
Hardik Pandya has emerged as potential captain for team India after KL Rahul and Rohit Sharma.