Hardik Pandya has the burning desire to win the IPL trophy with GT: Ravi Shastri

Gujarat Titans have truly been sensational in IPL 2022, recording one emphatic win after another. On Tuesday (May 24), the Hardik Pandya-led side thrashed Rajasthan Royals by seven wickets in Qualifier 1 to qualify for the finals. It must be noted that the Titans aren’t among the strongest ‘on-paper’ teams this season and many didn’t back them to go a long way.

However, the Ahmedabad-based team has made great utilization of their available resources and secured a place in the summit clash. Skipper Hardik has been instrumental in GT’s stellar run this season as he has led the team from the front. With 453 runs in the cabinet, the dasher is Gujarat’s highest run-scorer this season. He has also been impressive with the ball.

Hardik Pandya wants to take responsibilities: Ravi Shastri

Former Team India head coach Ravi Shastri is mighty impressed with Hardik’s performance in his maiden leadership assignment in the IPL. “There is a burning desire to win, being a team from Gujarat, the final is in Gujarat, he (Hardik Pandya) wants to take that there,” Ravi Shastri told Star Sports. Notably, Hardik’s appointment as GT captain raised several eyebrows initially as the all-rounder had been reeling with fitness issues in the last couple of years.

However, the move has paid dividends as Hardik has been nothing but sensational in his new role. Shastri, who has observed the all-rounder closely during his tenure with the national team, is also of the same opinion. He also stated that the dasher always wanted to bat up the order.

“He has tremendous confidence in his ability. He reads the game extremely well. He always wanted to bat higher up the order He can bat like a No. 4 batter. He reads the situations of the game, he reads the conditions, he knows his role and what is required and for captaining the side, the added responsibility has done wonders to his batting,” Shastri added.