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'No one knows what I went through during those 6 months': Hardik Pandya recalls 'sacrifices' before IPL 2022 return
Hardik Pandya made a return to Team India in the T20I series against South Africa.
Team India faced a 7-wicket loss on its return to international action on Thursday against South Africa. Despite posting a strong score of 211/4 in 20 overs, the Proteas, riding on brilliant contributions from Rassie van der Dussen and David Miller, registered an emphatic win in Delhi with five balls to spare. The Indian team was led by Rishabh Pant and saw the return of its star players Hardik Pandya and Dinesh Karthik. While Karthik arrived to bat in the final over of the Indian innings, Pandya displayed brilliant power-hitting skills as he remained unbeaten on 31 off 12 deliveries.
Hardik returned to the Indian team on the back of a brilliant outing in the 2022 Indian Premier League, where his side Gujarat Titans lifted the title. Titans had defeated Rajasthan Royals in the final of the season and Pandya finished as the side's highest run-scorer (487 runs in 15 innings).
In a video posted by the BCCI, Pandya recalled the win in IPL 2022.
“I was happy. It was more about the battles I won against my own self and a lot of other things as well. Winning the IPL, or even qualifying (for playoffs) was a big deal for me because a lot of people doubted us. A lot of people frowned at us before we started. A lot of people raised a lot of questions. A lot of things were said about me even before I made a comeback,” Pandya said.
The all-rounder further revealed that he used to get up at 5 AM and slept at 9:30 in the night for four successive months during his time away from the Indian team after the T20 World Cup.
“It was never about giving them answers. I'm just proud of the process I followed. No one knows what I went through the six months that I was off. I've gotten up at 5 in morning to make sure I train. I slept at 9:30 in the night for fourth months, so (there was) a lot of sacrifice. It was the battle I fought before the IPL. I have always worked hard in my life, and it has always given me the result I wanted,” said Pandya.
