'Sir wo toh pata nahi' - Hardik Pandya gives quirky reply on being asked about team management's plan

All-rounder Hardik Pandya has made a brilliant comeback to the Indian team after being out of the setup for a long time owing to his injury concerns. His stint with the Gujarat Titans at the IPL 2022 this year, where he lifted the championship cup as the captain, gave him an opportunity to mark a return to the international arena.

After leading the Indian side against Ireland, Pandya was named in the squad against England for the ongoing white-ball series. Pandya did justice to his place in the team as he scored his maiden T20I half-century in the first innings and then went on to claim a four-wicket haul in the second innings which helped India restrict the hosts to 148 runs and win the game by 50 runs.

The senior players, who missed out on the first game, will join the Indian squad for the remaining two T20Is. The players, who were a part of the combination in the recent game, will have to make way for the senior pros like Virat Kohli, Rishabh Pant, and Jasprit Bumrah, among others, in order to accommodate them. It will be a tough task for the Indian think tank to decide on a playing combination for the upcoming game.

Meanwhile, when this question was thrown to Pandya, he said: “Sir wo toh pata nahi, wo toh management ka hi kaam hai. Main toh bas India ka ek all-rounder ki tarha khelta hu. Mereko jo bolte hai wo main karta hu. Aur usse zyada dimag lagata nahi. (Sir, I don’t know much about management’s thinking. I’m just playing as an all-rounder. I do as the management says without thinking much.)”

It is all about working hard, life goes on: Hardik Pandya

Pandya’s reply caught everyone’s attention, as he made it very clear that his only motive is to play for the Indian team and work on himself as per the requirements of the team. This is not just the first time that Pandya has said this. He mentioned it during the Ireland series as well that he would keep working for the good of the team, be it any role he needs to portray.

“This is a white-ball season in a way. There are a couple of world cups coming so for me, it would be better if I can play as much white-ball as possible when the opportunity comes to play Tests then definitely but right now the focus is to play as many matches that come my way and perform my 100% in those. If I can’t then I will go out, I won’t take anybody’s place,” he stated

“For me, it was simple, what my team required and doing what I know. I believe the hard work pays off, my point is to prepare well, but the result is not in my control. Right now, all is coming off, today is a good day, and tomorrow might be bad. So, you don’t know, it is all about working hard, life goes on,” he added further.