"He said he will win; I said I will win" - Krunal Pandya on playing against brother Hardik in IPL 2022

Hardik Pandya (right) and Krunal Pandya (Credit: BCCI/IPL)

IPL 2022 is a season of many firsts. On Monday, it will see brothers Hardik Pandya and Krunal Pandya go up against each other for the first time at the Wankhede Stadium.

Hardik will lead debutants Gujarat Titans (GT) while Krunal will ply his trade for Lucknow Super Giants (LSG) led by KL Rahul. Krunal revealed that they both wished each other luck from the IPL team bus, a ritual they have been carrying on since childhood.

"Krunal Pandya is the biggest protecter of my life, he is the biggest supporter in my life. He's the biggest blessing in my life." - Hardik Pandya

Speaking ahead of the toss, Krunal Pandya said:

"It's the first time that we're playing against each other. Right from club cricket and age-group cricket, we've always played together. Very very excited and looking forward to it. It should be fun."

He continued:

"It's our ritual that before every match, even if we're playing individually we call and wish each other. We continued the tradition, and I called him from the bus. We wished each other - he said he will win, I said I will win, and then we decided let the best man win."

Until last year, both Krunal and Hardik represented five-time IPL winners Mumbai Indians (MI). However, MI let go both of the Pandya brothers before this year's mega auction. Hardik Pandya was picked up by Gujarat Titans in the pre-draft, while Lucknow snapped up Krunal Pandya at the IPL 2022 mega auction.

Check out the full IPL teams owner here.

"I've always enjoyed playing here" - Krunal Pandya on playing at the Wankhede Stadium

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Krunal, who knows the conditions at the Wankhede as well as his brother, said it was his favourite ground. The 31-year-old allrounder added that the team's preparations have been good, and the focus now will be on executing them well on the field. He said

"This is my favourite ground - I've always enjoyed playing here. I've played six seasons for MI here and have a lot of memories here."

He concluded:

"The team atmosphere is great; everyone is on the same page. The preparations have been really good, and we've been together for two weeks, so we've all got to know each other. Everyone is very excited - the preparations have gone really well, and it's now about executing on the field."

The Lucknow franchise will hope Krunal shines right from the start as they want to make a winning start to their IPL 2022 campaign. Gujarat Lions will hope the same from Hardik. who is also their captain.