Hardik Pandya loves the big stage and thrives under pressure.
While his performance with the ball during a challenging phase of the 2024 T20 World Cup final will always be cited as a prime example of his quality,
on Tuesday, he sent another reminder of his talent and justified former India coach Sanjay Bangar’s claim that there’s no player in India currently who can match the all-rounder’s capabilities.
Walking in to bat for India after a near two-month injury layoff, Pandya delivered in style, dazzling when his team was under the pump and peeling off a blistering half-century to propel them to a match-winning total against South Africa in the first T20I. The capacity crowd at Barabati Stadium was thoroughly entertained as India produced a clinical show with Pandya’s unbeaten 28-ball 59 and 1/16 from two overs being central to a 101-run win.
Pandya admits that injuries have tested him, but his mindset has always been to use the layoffs to get better.
“My mindset was really about coming back stronger, bigger, better. Injuries test you mentally and at the same point in time, it kind of puts a lot of doubts… and a lot of credit to the loved ones,” said Pandya in a video posted on bcci.tv.
“I’ve stood strong, I’ve done a lot of things with grace and that has helped me to become even more confident, back myself and really trust my skillset… I really believe in myself as a player. I’ve always believed that if you don’t believe in yourself, how would others believe you,” he added.
Pandya compares his role akin to a rockstar who must dazzle the audience, and it serves as a motivation for him.
“You should be a rockstar. You come, perform for 10 minutes and the crowd goes berserk, I think that has been the biggest motivation for me,” he said.
Pandya also briefly reflected on the hurdles he has faced during his career.
“Life has thrown a lot of lemons at me, I’ve always thought I’ll make a lemonade,” he said. “Every time I walk in, I feel like all the crowd is just waiting… they’ve come for this moment to watch me bat.”
The 32-year-old, who will be key to India’s hopes of defending the T20 World Cup title in a couple of months, feels that staying honest has helped him and that he doesn’t get impacted by how others perceive him.
“I think I have been a very honest, very real person in life as well, which has helped me a lot. I don’t really sugarcoat a lot of things in my life. It’s never about the other person, it’s never about how others think or how others perceive. It’s always about how I feel inside,” he said.
“Now, it’s time where Hardik Pandya wants to just play the sport, enjoy every second on the ground… and bigger and better will be the motto in my life,” he added.
