Personal Details and Early Life
Hardik Himanshu Pandya is an Indian international cricketer who is an all-rounder. He bats right-handed middle-order and bowls right-arm fast-medium. Hardik is famous for his hard-hitting batting style and is known for his swagger on and off the field. He has an elder brother, Krunal Pandya, who is also an Indian international cricketer.
Hardik was born to Himanshu Pandya and Nalini Pandya on 11 October 1993 in Surat, Gujarat. His father, Himanshu, shut down his business in Surat and shifted to Vadodara when Hardik was five and Krunal was seven. His father made this sacrifice to facilitate his sons with better cricket training facilities. Hardik and Krunal were both enrolled in the Kiran More’s cricket academy in Vadodara. Hardik did his schooling at the MK High School but dropped out in ninth grade to focus on cricket.
In one of his interviews with the Indian Express, Hardik explained that he has dropped from his state age-group teams due to his “attitude problems.” He added that he did not like to hide his emotions and was just an expressive child. According to his father, Hardik started his career as a leg spinner but turned to fast bowling at the age of 18 at the insistence of Sanath Kumar, Baroda coach.
Career
Hardik made his domestic debut in 2013 for Baroda and played an important role in their Syed Mushtaq Ali trophy triumph in the 2013-14 season. In 2015, he was bought by Mumbai Indians in the Indian Premier League (IPL) at the base price of Rs. 10 lacs. His commendable all-around performances for the Mumbai Indians earned him a spot in the Indian national team on a tour to Australia in 2016.
Hardik made his International debut against Australia in a T20 match at Adelaide on 27 January 2016, picking up 2 wickets. In his 40 T20I matches to date, Hardik has picked up 38 wickets and scored 310 runs.
In 2016, Hardik also made his ODI debut against New Zealand at Dharamsala on 16 October. His 36 off 32 balls won him the Man Of the Match award. Hardik has played 54 ODI matches, scoring 957 runs including four 50s, and picked up 54 wickets.
In the Test cricket scenario, he made his debut on 26 July 2017, in Galle against Srilanka. He scored his maiden Test century in the same series scoring 108 off 96 balls in the 3rd Test and also became the first Indian batsman to score a Test century just before lunch. He has played 11 Test matches scoring 528 runs and picking up 17 wickets.
After Hardik’s successful International stints, in 2018 he was retained by the Mumbai Indians in the IPL for a whopping Rs. 11 crores. He has been one of the best young talents picked up from the IPL. His IPL career involves 79 matches where he has scored 1346 runs and picked up 49 wickets as of 11 November 2020.
Achievements
●He is the first Indian to score 30+ runs and take 4 wickets in the same T20I match.
●He is the fourth Indian to be named player of the match on ODI debut (16 October 2016).
●Most runs scored in a single over of a Test innings for an Indian batsman (26 runs).
●Member of the ODI XI of the year 2017 by Cricbuzz
‘Koffee With Karan’ Controversy
In January 2019, Hardik Pandya and KL Rahul were guests on a famous talk show hosted by Karan Johar, ‘Koffee with Karan’. On the show, Hardik made some controversial and sexist remarks for which he was received huge backlash and criticism. His monologue was described as misogynistic, derogatory, and disgraceful by the public. As a result of his actions, both Hardik and Rahul were handed suspensions by the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) midway between the Australia tour and were called back home to explain themselves. About his remarks, Hardik explained that he got carried away with the show.
Personal Life
Hardik got engaged to an Indian-Serbian dancer and actress Nataša Stanković on 1 January 2020. On 30 July, their first child, a boy, Agastya, was born.
