‘Hardik has to take..’: Gavaskar praises GT skipper before IPL 2023 final

With making it possible to for GT to reach IPL finals back to back, Pandya now has a chance to repeat the historic feats of MS Dhoni and Rohit Sharma.

The GT is going to face cricket legend Mahendra Singh Dhoni, who team Chennai Super Kings have won four IPL trophies and eying for the fifth one. Looking at the way Pandya Has evolved, it appears that he has learnt a lot of cricketing nuances from Dhoni.

ALSO READ: IPL 2023: Mahendra Singh Dhoni set to create this record as he leads CSK in final

Legendary cricketer Sunil Gavaskar, while sharing his views on Pandya’s captaincy and his camaraderie with Dhoni, said — as quoted by Star Sports, “He (Hardik) has been very open about his admiration and affection for MSD, just like all those who have followed MSD’s career. When they go out to the toss, they will be very friendly and smiling all that. But when it comes to the match, it will be a completely different atmosphere. It’s a very good opportunity from Hardik Pandya to show how quickly he has learned.”

Considering Dhoni’s CSK featuring in his 11th IPL final on Sunday and Pandya contested five IPL finals in his glittering career, one thing is very surprising and that is, Pandya has never lost an IPL final. This season, he played 16 matches and scored 325 runs.

“When he was captaining for the first time last year, nobody knew what to expect because he has been one of the most exciting and excitable cricketer as well. But that excitable part, we have seen over the last year. The calmness that he brings into the team is reminiscent of MSD. This is a happy team, which is exactly what we see with CSK as well. Hardik has to take a lot of credit for that,” Gavaskar observed.

Updated: 28 May 2023, 03:40 PM IST