"Hardik Pandya and Ashish Nehra are personalities that are excitable" - Brad Hogg on Ahmedabad franchise's new recruits
Former Australian spinner Brad Hogg has provided his opinion over the Ahmedabad franchise's new appointments ahead of the mega auction. The management roped in Ashish Nehra as head coach while naming Hardik Pandya as their first draft pick as well as their captain.
A look at Team Ahmedabad's Player Picks.
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Nehra has been associated with the Royal Challengers Bangalore franchise as an assistant coach in the past. This, however, marks Pandya's first stint as captain at the highest level. Hogg lauded the duo's "excitable" personality, but was wary of their differences at the same time.
While speaking on his YouTube channel, he said:
"Hardik Pandya and Ashish Nehra are personalities that are excitable over at Ahmedabad. When they've got a team together, they have to understand there are different personalities as well. Don't go about giving 100 advice to a bowler at the top of the mark."
Hogg added:
"Trust the players. When Nehra was the assistant coach at RCB, he was always on the edge of the rope giving advice, I did not like what I saw there. He does not want to do that in Ahmedabad."
The Ahmedabad franchise have also secured the services of Rashid Khan and Shubman Gill ahead of the mega auction. They have 53 crore remaining in their purse to acquire the rest of their squad.
Hardik Pandya as captain and Ashish Nehra as head coach. We are in for a roller-coaster ride with the Ahmedabad franchise!
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"Pandya could be a very good captain because he is a bit like Kohli" - Brad Hogg
Hardik Pandya was notably appointed as the vice-captain for a solitary fixture in the tour of Sri Lanka last year. Hogg feels that Pandya could be a successful captain because of his determination, which embodies Virat Kohli. The former player also noted that there is currently a bit of inexperience in the Ahmedabad camp.
He noted:
"Pandya could be a very good captain because he is a bit like Kohli. He wants to go out there and dominate. He's got a body language that says, 'I'm here to beat you.'"
Hogg added about Nehra and Pandya:
"I think they'll do a good job. Both are rather inexperienced in their roles, which could be an issue for Ahmedabad. Pandya captaining under Flower and Rahul under Nehra would have been a balance of experience over there."
The IPL mega auctions are slated to be held on February 12 and 13 with the authorities planning to start the competition from March 27 onwards.