Hardik Pandya: Unsold in 2014, IPL-winning captain in 2022

Hardik Pandya is the Indian star, he is an ordinary Baroda guy, an unknown face in the domestic circuit, who went unsold in the IPL 2014 auction. But luckily in the 2015 auction he was bought by the Mumbai Indians owner led by Rohit Sharma for his base price of Rs. 10 lakhs. From 2015 to 2021, Hardik scored 1,476 runs at a strike rate of 153.91 and took 42 wickets, and was the face of MI’s title success in the 2015, 2017, 2019 and 2020 editions respectively.

All rounder Hardik Pandya rides on top of victory in the world’s most prestigious T20 title race, with the undefeated Gujarat Titans winning their debut team a Champions title.

Prior to IPL 2022, Pandya had played in four Indian Premier League (IPL) finals against Mumbai Indians, finishing the winning side in each. Hardik’s beat Rajasthan Royals by 7 wickets in the final at the Narendra Modi Stadium in Ahmedabad to clinch the Indian Premier League title. Thus, he started the IPL journey in 2014 as an unsold player and became the first player to lead a team to title victory. Pandya, who has won the trophy four times with Mumbai(2015, 2017, 2019, 2020), won the trophy with the Gujarat Titans, surpassing MS Dhoni who won four titles(2010, 2011, 2018, 2021).

Pandya said, “I have always enjoyed responsibility” and “it gets the best out of me. No matter how many times, no matter how many games I have played, to play for India and the love and support I got is only in the eyes of the Indian team.”