In their first season in the Indian Premier League, Hardik Pandya has done an excellent job of leading Gujarat Titans to the final. GT dominated the league stage and then beat Rajasthan Royals in Qualifier 1 to be the first team to make the IPL 2022 final. They will now take on RR again, after they beat Royal Challengers Bangalore in Qualifier 2. The Titans' team director, Vikram Solanki, heaped praise on their skipper and said he has "a poise that is typical of winners."
"For me, it was very apparent that right from the outset, from when we spoke to him about the captaincy, he was enthused by it," Vikram Solanki told ESPNcricinfo on Hardik Pandya, who was one of their pre-auction picks.
"He is somebody that's clearly a passionate cricketer, he plays cricket in a sort of entertaining way that is contagious in its style itself because he's confident, he is prepared to take the fight on. But, to some extent, that point about encouraging people to not be afraid of making mistakes, not doubt themselves if something hasn't gone right, he's certainly been giving of his time in that sense, he's been giving of his experience in that sense. And he's got a lot of experience to share," the former England cricketer said.
"To me, he has a poise that is typical of winners. He's somebody that has clearly been through a great deal in his life, both as a cricketer and as a person. And he uses those experiences to sort of lead the way he does," Solanki said.
"I'm so pleased because he was very adamant that he wanted to do a really good job. He's a thoroughly good human being. And that that has sort of stood him in good stead as well," he said.
Gujarat Titans will take on Rajasthan Royals at the Narendra Modi Stadium in Ahmedabad on Sunday as they look to make history in their first year in the tournament.