India star all-rounder Hardik Pandya on Monday posted a picture of his chill session with MS Dhoni. In the photo, Pandya dressed in a white and blue oversized shirt and sunglasses can be seen posing with Dhoni.
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The two cricketers are known to be sharing a very close bond and are often seen catching up whenever they get time from their busy schedules. The pic was shared with a caption that featured emoticons denoting GOAT and crown in obvious reference to the former India captain as the greatest of all time.
— hardik pandya (@hardikpandya7) August 8, 2022
Hardik Pandya has often talked about Dhoni’s contribution to shaping his career in the early days. Speaking to his fellow teammate Dinesh Karthik after a match, Pandya revealed MS Dhoni’s advice during the early days of his career.
“Early in my days, Mahi Bhai taught me one thing. I asked him how do you get away from pressure and everything. And he gave me very simple advice, ‘Stop thinking about your score and start to think of what your team requires,” he said.
Pandya added that the advice stuck in his mind and has helped him in playing through difficult situations.
Pandya, after a successful IPL campaign leading the newly inducted franchise Gujarat Titans to a title victory, stormed his way back into the India squad. He has showcased remarkable performances with both the bat and the ball following his comeback and was even appointed the skipper for the two-match T20I series against Ireland in June.
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Panya’s success as a captain has led to many experts backing him as a full-time skipper for India in the future. On being asked about his thoughts on a leadership role, Pandya, after the fifth and final game T20I match against West Indies, said that he would be open to such an opportunity but right now the focus was on the upcoming tournament. “Yeah! why not? If I get an opportunity in the future, I’ll be more than happy to do that, but right now we have the World Cup, and we have the Asia Cup,” he said.
India registered a 4-1 victory against the West Indies in the T20I series despite several key players being rested.
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