IPL 2022: Hardik Pandya on Being Gujarat Titans Captain – ‘Allows me be Flagbearer of The Team’

Mumbai: It was a pleasant sight to see captain of Gujarat Titans Hardik Pandya taking responsibility with the bat and coming up with the goods. On Thursday, Hardik smashed a brilliant 87* off 52 balls against Rajasthan Royals. What was surprising to see was the fact that Hardik was batting at No 4 and he made his way in the middle in the third over after Titans lost two early wickets. After his breathtaking knock, he admitted that coming in early allows him to calculate well.

“Not used to batting for so long. Gives me time though to calculate. Today I got the rhythm and planned my knock. It allows the others to play freely,” Hardik on receiving the man of the match.

The ex-MI star also claimed that he is enjoying the new role as a captain as he is getting to be the flagbearer of the team. “Captaincy is always fun. Be the flagbearer of the team. The team is gelling well. I wanted all of us to be happy for each other’s happiness. That is working well for the team,” he added.

Lockie Ferguson (3/23) and Yash Dayal (3/40) picked up three wickets each for Gujarat while Mohammed Shami (1/39) and Hardik Pandya (1/18) also chipped in with one wicket each.

Brief scores: Gujarat Titans 192/4 in 20 overs (Hardik Pandya 87 not out, Abhinav Manohar 43; Riyan Parag 1/12) beat Rajasthan Royals 155-9 in 20 overs ( Jos Buttler 54, Shimron Hetmyer 29; Lockie Ferguson 3/23) by 37 runs.