IPL 2022: Gujarat Titans captain Hardik Pandya slams second consecutive fifty, rises to the occasion

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Mumbai, April 14: Gujarat Titans' captain Hardik Pandya on Thursday (April 14) slammed his second consecutive half-century in the ongoing IPL 2022 here at Dr DY Patil Sports Academy, Mumbai.

The right-handed batsman from Baroda led his team from the front and notched up a quickfire and much-needed fifty off 33 balls against Rajasthan Royals. Hardik - who is relishing the added responsibility of captaincy - notched up his IPL career's sixth half-century.

He stepped into the middle at a critical juncture in the third over of the innings after Matthew Wade and Vijay Shankar returned to the dugout early. He showed his hard-hitting skills in the fifth over when he smashed young RR pacer Kuldeep Sen for a hat-trick of boundaries.

With his batting partner Abhinav Manohar scoring decently at the other end, Hardik kept rotating the strike. In the 14th over, which was again bowled by Sen, Hardik hit a couple of boundaries to complete his half-century.

Soon after getting to his fifty, Hardik unleashed the beast mode when he dispatched Royals' off-spinner Ravichandran Ashwin for back-to-back sixes.

Hardik went on to score an unbeaten 87 off 52 deliveries and guided Gujarat Titans to an imposing 192 for 4 after being put in to bat first. Hardik showcased his explosive hitting as he hit eight boundaries and four sixes in his knock.

With his knock, the right-handed batsman even earned the Orange Cap momentarily after surpassing Royals' star opener Jos Buttler to become the leading run-scorer in the tournament. But the England batter earned his cap back by hitting GT strike pacer Mohammed Shami for three consecutive boundaries in the first over of the run chase.

Earlier in the day, Royals' captain Sanju Samson won the toss and invited Hardik and his team to bat first.

At the toss, Hardik said, "We would have liked to bowl first as well but I wouldn't mind batting first as well. It's always good to get responsibility, I have always been a player who has enjoyed taking responsibilities, taking things on my shoulder. It helps me to get better as a cricketer and as a person as well. The boys are pretty chilled out, and the supporting staff is nice."

Talking about his captaincy journey in the tournament, Hardik said, "Right now, we are going in the honeymoon phase and I'd like to contribute. I know I always have two departments to contribute to. Even if I am having a bad day with my bat, I can still contribute with the ball and vice versa. We were 5-10 short, but we could have been a little more disciplined with our bowling. I will not be too strict on the bowlers, they are trying their best and we are there to enjoy the sport."