Vijay Shankar praised Hardik Pandya for his excellent captaincy and leading from the front. The all–rounder seam bowler claimed that Pandya can deliver when called upon. Particularly following the Titans’ championship victory the previous season, Pandya has received high appreciation for his leadership. The swashbuckling all-rounder has displayed initiative and has been compared to the legendary MS Dhoni for his cool composure. Vijay Shankar noted how Pandya takes on a lot of responsibilities and leads the team by example during a news conference following the victory over the Kolkata Knight Riders. He stated:
“Hardik is really aggressive. He wants to find a way to come out good in difficult situations. He always wants to do it for the team. He takes the new ball. He delivered it when we needed the wicket of Rohit Sharma against the Mumbai Indians. He got 66 on a difficult wicket against LSG. He is taking up a lot of responsibility. That’s the best thing to do. When you are a captain, you have to show the team that this is how it is done.”
Vijay Shankar scored an unbeaten 51 off 24 deliveries while leading the Titans to a seven-wicket victory as they chased down 180. The cricketer, who was born in Tamil Nadu, contributed an uninterrupted 87 runs in partnership with David Miller to lift the reigning champions to the top of the standings.
Vijay Shankar also makes a comment about not playing for India again.
The 32-year-old has stated that he is not currently considering returning to the national team and is instead focused on leading the Titans to their second IPL championship. Shankar said:
” It’s too far for me. Mentally, I’m really not thinking about that. If I can win matches for my team, that’s the only satisfaction I can take from every game. I’ll be really happy to contribute to my team’s wins. Cricket is something we love, and that’s why we still continue playing. No expectations, I just wanted to enjoy my cricket.”