'Super excited to start this new journey' - Hardik Pandya reacts after being named Ahmedabad captain for IPL 2022

India all-rounder Hardik Pandya is excited to start his new journey in the Indian Premier League (IPL). He has been named the captain of new IPL team Ahmedabad for the upcoming season after signing him for a whopping amount of Rs 15 crore. This is the first time he will be playing for a team other than Mumbai Indians ever since making his IPL debut back in 2015.

He emerged as the best all-rounder in the country over these years thanks to his power-hitting prowess and skillful pace bowling. But injuries over the last couple of years meant that he didn’t bowl much and it affected his chances of getting retained by the five-time champions as well. Nevertheless, Ahmedabad franchise has secured his services now and Hardik Pandya is looking forward to starting a new era with this team.

After the official announcement of the draft picks on Friday (January 21) evening, Hardik Pandya posted a video on his Twitter handle thanking the franchise owners and management for showing faith in him. “Hello Ahmedabad. Super excited to start this new journey in the new IPL team Ahmedabad. Just wanted to take this opportunity to thank the owners, management for putting their faith in me as a captain of this team,” he said.

Hardik Pandya welcome Rashid Khan and Gill

Ahmedabad also signed Rashid Khan for Rs 15 crore and Shubman Gill for Rs 8 crore along with Hardik. They are now left with a purse of Rs 52 crore to build the rest of the team in the mega auction. Hardik Pandya welcomed his new teammates as well while also promising the fans that the team, under his leadership, will give their 100% on the field.

“It’s a new era for us and I am excited what lies ahead. What I can promise you is this team will always fight and give it their all. A big welcome to Rashid and Shubman as well, two players whom I know extremely well and will bring a lot to our table. See you soon,” the 28-year-old added.