'When I Made Debut for India, He Was Very Supportive': Young Pacer Heaps Praise on 'Helpful' Hardik Pandya

It hasn’t been even a year since Hardik Pandya started leading India in the shortest format of the game but he has emerged as the people’s captain. The boys who have played under him are never shy of praising the all-rounder for understanding them and giving them a long rope despite failures. Fast bowler Shivam Mavi is one such youngster who made his debut under Pandya’s captaincy earlier this year and took a four-wicket haul on his debut against Sri Lanka in Mumbai.

During a media interaction, Mavi told the news agency, IANS that playing under Hardik would benefit him as the latter has been very kind and helpful to him.

“I did well there for India, where Hardik bhai was the captain. Now I am getting to play here, which is a new team. I am very excited to play for Gujarat Titans. Hardik bhai is very helpful and it’s going to be very beneficial for me in playing for the Gujarat Titans,” Mavi was quoted as saying by IANS.

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“When I played under him in the Indian team for the first time, he was supportive, which is very important for a player as captain, along with management, is responsible for making a good environment in the team,” he added.

Though India lost the second T20I to Sri Lanka by 16 runs in Pune, Mavi earned plaudits for his whirlwind 15-ball 26, hitting two fours and as many sixes. Mavi, 24, stated that he had been working hard on his hitting skills, something which he had been unable to do so before.

“In the last two years, batting has become very important, whether you are playing for the franchise, country or in domestic cricket. In the end, if you get to hit two-three maximums, then it is very great for your team.

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“Last two years, I have worked very hard on my batting and it has improved a lot. I am working very hard on this aspect so that I can become as useful as possible for the team, which will be better for the side,” Mavi said.

Gujarat Titans will begin their IPL 2023 campaign against Chennai Super Kings at the Narendra Modi Stadium on March 31.

(With IANS Inputs)

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