Hardik Pandya raised concerns when midway through the 18th over in the Rajasthan Royals’ chase he decided to walk off the field clutching his hamstring. Vijay Shankar bowled three deliveries to complete the over. The Gujarat Titans, captain, however, cleared the air about his fitness after that match. In a welcome news to cricket fans, Pandya said there was nothing serious about his injury and it was just a cramp.
“A lot of hard work for me tonight. It was just cramps, nothing serious,”
Hardik, who scored 87 not out off 52 balls, said.
It was a second consecutive fifty plus score for the all-rounder who is aiming to make a national comeback. He is batting higher up the order at number four, allowing him more time to pace his innings.
Watch: Hardik Pandya breaks middle stump into two, scripts Samson dismissal
“I am not used to batting this long. It gives me a lot of time. I can calculate and take risk. The last game it did not come off but today I made sure I did. I have been in this situation where I have taken the role of scoring 12-ball 30. It is difficult but now at four I can control the game,” said Hardik.
On the leadership responsibility, he added: “Captaincy is fun and it allows me to take responsibility and be the flag-bearer. The group carries one another. My motto was I wanted everyone to be happy.”
Hardik also ran Royals captain Sanju Samson out with a direct hit and then picked up the wicket of Jimmy Neesham with the ball. He was adjudged Player of the Match for his all-round show in GT’s 37-run victory over Royals on Thursday at the DY Patil Stadium in Mumbai. The win also took Gujarat to the top of the IPL 2022 points table.
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