Indian all-rounder Hardik Pandya has been hitting the headlines after his brilliant maiden Test century against Sri Lanka. After his brilliant knock, he was even compared with legendary Kapil Dev.
The young lad had made his international debut in a T20 series in Australia. Gradually, he showed a transition from a T20 to a Test match player and is now running towards the pinnacle of success.
However, things weren't easy for him. Here is all you need to know about the emerging star of Indian cricket team.
More's guidance
Former Indian wicket-keeper Kiran More trained Hardik Pandya and his brother Krunal. Krunal and Hardik were aged seven and five when they joined his academy. The minimum age to be admitted to More's academy is 12 but they were exception as More told Indian Express, "I remember both Krunal and Hardik wore all the cricketing gears and the way they batted, it made me change my decision. It was the day I realised that talent can come in any form or in any age."
Life before IPL
In 2016, during an interview with the Indian Express, Pandya revealed, "Rs 5 ke maggi aati thi, malli ko request karke garam pani leta tha aur mein aur mere bhai ground pe bana ke khata the. Breakfast bhi wohi aur lunch bhi wohi (my brother and I used to get maggi for Rs 5 and we used to request the gardener to give us hot water and we used to prepare and eat it at the ground for lunch and breakfast). 365 days non-stop."
Parents' struggle
It was not only Pandya who worked hard and made sacrifices. His parents tried to give their children the best opportunities and therefore his father, Himanshu, who had a small car finance business in Surat, moved to Vadodara after shutting the business down only to facilitate his sons with better cricket facilities.
Started his career as leg spinner
According to One India, Kiran More once revealed that he was a leg spinner. "His leg-spin wasn't nothing of note. In one of the club matches, we felt short of a fast bowler and asked Hardik whether he can step in. He did and it was surprising to see him bowl at a good pace and getting five wickets. So, we advised him to stick to pace bowling because he has all traits to become a good all-rounder," he added.
Left school
In an interview Krunal told Indian Express, "He is ninth fail and I'm about to graduate but he does everything in style. He even writes English better than me because whatever he does is with confidence." After class 9, he started concentrating totally on cricket.
Borrowed bats from Irfan Pathan
In 2016, Pandya told cricinfo in an interview, "I used to borrow bats till two years ago. I did not have the money. I did not have a bat to play in Vijay Hazare Trophy before last year. I called Irfan bhai [Irfan Pathan] and he gave me two bats. Then last year, I got a bat sponsor. Till then, I was playing with whatever I had. You won't believe but I used to make my bats last for at least two years, strapping them several times."
39 runs in an over
In Syed Mushtaq Ali Trophy of 2016, Hardik playing for Baroda smashed 39 runs in an over. If you don't believe it, you can watch the smash of the 'West Indian From Baroda' here:
