Hardik Pandya had to cope up with severe criticism when he was made the captain of Mumbai Indians, replacing Rohit Sharma.
New Delhi: Hardik Pandya couldn’t control his emotions as he recalled back his tough days at Mumbai Indians after India’s T20 World Cup 2024 triumph on Saturday in Barbados. Defending 177, it was Pandya, who turned the game in India’s favour with the wickets of Heinrich Klaasen and David Miller as the Men in Blue got over the line by seven runs to pocket their second T20 World Cup trophy.
It was a tough six months for Pandya. From being booed by thousands of fans during the Indian Premier League after replacing Rohit Sharma as Mumbai Indians captain, to defend 16 runs in the final over en route to India’s victory, the all-rounder chose the grandest of moments to turn things around. To add more to that, Pandya also dealt with social media abuses following the rumoured divorce with his wife Natasha Stankovic.
A victim of unnecessary criticism, Pandya didn’t have a best of the seasons in IPL earlier this year. Following Mumbai Indians’ campaign, Pandya flew to London and recharged himself in the wilderness before returning to top form in the T20 World Cup, thus turning the boos into cheers. The 30-year-old revealed what he went through in the past six months.
Nothing but massive respect for you, @HardikPandya7!
After his recent setbacks, ‘Kung fu Pandya’ narrates how his unwavering spirit, hard work & belief led to his comeback in the #T20WorldCup!
Tune in to watch the entire celebrations, all day long, TODAY, only on Star… pic.twitter.com/lwxAowAD1A
— Star Sports (@StarSportsIndia) June 29, 2024
“It means a lot. Very emotional, we’ve been working very hard and something was not clicking. But today we got what the whole nation wanted. More special for me, how my last 6 months were, I haven’t spoken a word,” Pandya told Star Sports after India’s win. I knew that if I kept working hard I could shine and do what I could do. Getting an opportunity like this makes it more special. We always believed, it was just about executing our plans and staying calm and letting the pressure come to them,” he added.
Named as Rohit’s deputy in the tournament, Pandya bagged 11 wickets in eight games while also contributing with 144 runs in six innings at a strike rate of 151.57. He also scored an unbeaten 50 against Bangladesh. With Rohit announcing his retirement from the shortest format of the game, Pandya is tipped to take the role of India’s full-time T20I skipper.
