It was 5:30 in the morning sometime in early March 2022, and Hardik Pandya was up and running for the day. He was all set to go out and train, and it was part of a rigorous daily routine building up to the IPL. Pandya, by his own admission, needed a break after the 2021 World T20 to recalibrate. Pandya not bowling had become a major controversy and, to a degree, he had to cop the blame for India’s failure to go past the group stages of the World T20 in Dubai. He had to redeem himself and set the record straight.
With yet another World T20 just months away, he had to make the IPL platform count. As captain of the newly formed Gujarat Titans, he had the opportunity to make a telling statement. Prove himself as India’s go-to all-rounder in white-ball cricket, and regain the finisher’s spot in India’s limited-overs set-up. Needless to say, he did so in style in the IPL 2022. From leading the Titans to the title, to playing a number of impactful innings, to bowling at 140km/h, Pandya was one of the stars of IPL 2022.
And he has continued to lead the Titans in the very same manner in 2023. The best thing about Pandya is that despite the success in the past two seasons, he remains rooted. Even after the win against Royal Challengers Bangalore in Bengaluru, which pushed RCB out of the IPL, there was very little show of emotion from Pandya. There was no over-the-top reaction and every action was kind of understated. It was just another game on the way to a mission he had set out to accomplish.
In this IPL, what has also stood out is Pandya the captain. Not simply with bat and ball, he has been excellent on the field with some key catches. He has taken some excellent leadership calls as well, which, in time, could easily catapult him to the full-time-skipper role in India’s white-ball teams. In back-to-back IPL campaigns, Pandya has made a strong case for himself to be the captain of India come the World T20 in the Caribbean and the USA in 2024.
On current form, Pandya could well hold the key to India’s chances in the World Cup at home in October-November. In fact, Pandya at full intensity is something the team will badly need. From what we have seen for the Gujarat Titans, Pandya the all-rounder is back at full tilt. Bowling at speeds between 135 and 140 km/h, he has shared the new ball in half the Titans’ games. Not only has he bowled his full quota in some of the games, he has done so at good pace and looked in rhythm.
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Just like every other human being, he has made many mistakes in the past. He has rushed his return post-injury a few times and, as a result, had a rough ride with the selection committee in October 2021. For a 26 or 27 year old to deal with stardom isn’t easy. Money, glamour and fame aren’t easy bedfellows and there are many who aren’t ready to deal with the full package.
Pandya was a classic example. All of a sudden, he had it all. In the course of the last five years, he has become a multi-millionaire with millions looking up to him as a role model. His the perfect underdog story. Rags to riches. People seek him out for autographs, want to pose for pictures with him and share the same social space with him. He is an Indian national-team cricketer, who is one in a billion. It is a heady world, which also has its flipside. You tend to overlook the responsibilities that come with it, you tend to get swept away by the gloss, and it makes you feel you can get away with it all.
Importantly for Indian cricket, Pandya 2.0 is a more mature version of what we have seen earlier. No more the impulsiveness of the past, or the over-exuberance of youth. There is a certain calm, which means no more sensational comments on TV shows or press conferences. He knows what his goal is, and why he is doing what he is doing. Playing the IPL play-offs again is just a step on the road to achieving greater laurels. That’s the self-discovery or the recalibration that he had set out to achieve. So far, it is all going to plan. If his body holds up and he can stay injury-free, Pandya could well be Indian cricket’s man of the year.
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