'Hardik Pandya Has Qualities That Can Turn Him Into A Successful And Very Fine Captain'

Vikram Solanki, the Director of Cricket of Gujarat Titans, feels Hardik Pandya has all the qualities to become a very successful and fine captain in the Indian Premier League.

Hardik was drafted by the Titans for Rs 15 crore and was announced as their captain well ahead of the auction.The all-rounder, who was an integral part of Mumbai Indians in the previous season, has no previous experience of leading in the IPL.
However, Vikram feels Hardik's learnings from MS Dhoni, Virat Kohli and Rohit Sharma will help him when he leads the Gujarat Titans.

"We see in Hardik the qualities that can turn him into a successful and very fine captain. We have spoken a couple of times about his track record as far as winning IPL titles is concerned," Solanki told The Telegraph.

"He has been part of our leadership group and has taken a lot of learnings from other captains like Rohit Sharma, Virat Kohli, and MS Dhoni. He will use all that learning in developing himself as a captain and will be well backed by the support staff," he added.

The Titans open their IPL 2022 campaign against another new franchise in Lucknow Super Giants on March 28 at the Wankhede Stadium.

Notably, Hardik has not played any international cricket since the T20 World Cup last year and he also skipped the domestic tournaments. However, Solanki mentioned that Pandya is working extremely hard in his rehabilitation, adding that it's important to be patient with the star all-rounder.

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"Hardik is working extremely hard in all aspects of his game, from the rehabilitation and recovery point of view. He is conscious that he has to get up to speed with batting, bowling and fielding. He is on his path to recovery and playing a full part but we have to be patient with the demands," he said.