[Watch] Hardik Pandya starts bowling practice ahead of IPL 2022
Team India's flamboyant all-rounder Hardik Pandya is set to lead the Gujarat Titans in the upcoming edition of the Indian Premier League (IPL 2022). The cricket star recently gave fans a glimpse of his preparations for this year's cash-rich league.
Pandya posted an Instagram story earlier today in which he could be seen rolling his arm in the nets. It is worth mentioning that the 28-year-old has bowled sparingly in competitive cricket ever since suffering a chronic back injury during the 2018 Asia Cup.
Along with skipper Hardik Pandya (INR 15 crore), the franchise has roped in star Afghan leg-spinner Rashid Khan (INR 15 crore) and Indian opener Shubman Gill (INR 8 crore) as their retention picks ahead of the ten-franchise IPL 2022 auction.
Shubh Aarambh! #GujaratTitans
Former India pacer Ashish Nehra will be the team's head coach, while ex-England player Vikram Solanki has been roped in as their director of cricket. South Africa's Gary Kirsten will be the team's mentor and batting coach for the season.
They will go into the auction with a remaining purse of INR 52 crore. The event is scheduled to take place in Bengaluru on February 12 and 13.
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Hardik Pandya to miss Ranji Trophy 2022 to focus on white-ball comeback
The dynamic all-rounder has decided to give the impending season of the Ranji Trophy a miss to focus on white-ball cricket. The player was not named in Baroda's squad for the country's premier red-ball domestic competition.
The Baroda Cricket Association has appointed Kedar Devdhar as skipper for the season while Vishnu Solanki will serve as his deputy. Hardik's brother Krunal Pandya has been included in the squad.
Baroda Ranji Trophy squad: Kedar Devdhar (c), Vishnu Solanki, Pratyush Kumar, Shivalik Sharma, Krunal Pandya, Abhimanyusingh Rajput, Dhruv Patel, Mitesh Patel, Lukman Meriwala, Babasafikhan Pathan (wk), Atit Sheth, Bhargav Bhatt, Parth Kohli, Shashwat Rawat, Soyeb Sopariya, Kartik Kakade, Gurjindersingh Mann, Jyotsnil Singh, Ninad Rathwa, Akshay More.