Get ready for the spotlight on Hardik Pandya as the Indian Premier League (IPL) 2024 kicks off. He’s taking charge of the Mumbai Indians, stepping in for Rohit Sharma as the captain. Pandya hasn’t played international cricket for India since hurting his ankle in the ICC Cricket World Cup against Bangladesh last October. He missed the T20Is against Australia at home and the South Africa tour.
Before the upcoming IPL season, Pandya switched from the Gujarat Titans to the Mumbai Indians in November. He took over from Rohit Sharma, who led the MI to five IPL victories.
Leading up to the IPL, Hardik Pandya shared some lesser-known things about himself. “Most of my fans don’t know this, but I’m a homebody. I rarely go out. In the last three to four years, I’ve hardly left home, only when it was necessary or something came up with my friends. I prefer staying home. There was a time when I stayed home for 50 days straight. I didn’t even use the home elevator,” he revealed during a chat show with the UK 07 rider. “I have my home gym, home theater. Everything I like is right here at home.”
When asked about a viral photo of him in a fancy car, Pandya explained that someone sent it to him for a test drive. He also mentioned his approach to media comments: “I don’t usually comment in the media. I’ve never done it, and it doesn’t bother me,” said Hardik Pandya.
He also shared a humorous incident related to winning the ‘Man of the Match’ trophy. “I used to think the player who gets the Man of the Match award gets all the money. So when I won it, I thought the money was for me. But later, I found out it’s divided among the team. After all, it’s a team sport,” he laughed.
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