Hardik Pandya has led Gujarat Titans to its maiden IPL victory this season while KL Rahul, Shreyas Iyer, and Sanju Samson are too impressed with their leadership skills in their respective franchises for the 2022 season in IPL.
The success of Indian players as captains in the tournament like IPL will ultimately benefit the national team of India as leadership skills will accelerate the growth of youngsters, says the Head Coach Rahul Dravid on Tuesday.
Hardik Pandya has led Gujarat Titans to its maiden IPL victory this season while KL Rahul, Shreyas Iyer, and Sanju Samson are too impressed with their leadership skills in their respective franchises for the 2022 season in IPL.
Rahul made the debutants Lucknow Super Giants to the playoffs this season and Sanju Samson with his captaincy took Rajasthan Royals to the runners-up in IPL 2022.
“It is great that we have a lot of Indian captains doing well. Hardik was one of them. Brilliant. KL did a good job at LSG and Sanju in RR. Shreyas in KKR,”
Dravid said at a press conference.
“It is really great to see the young batters leading the team. It helps people grow and develop as players, having to lead teams to make the decisions. It helps you grow as a person and as a player.
“It is great from our perspective that the younger Indian players are leading well in the IPL,”
he added.
India is set to face South Africa in the five-match T20 series starting on Thursday.
A couple of new faces have been named in the Indian shortest format squad including Hardik Pandya and Dinesh Karthik who are coming back from an outstanding IPL campaign.
Pandya, who was having a back injury and struggled with the batting was dropped out from the team after the team’s terrible performance in the recent T20 World Cup in UAE to exit the league in the league stage, gave a stunning comeback in the IPL.
He played a key role in the Titan’s success in the league while contributing with both bat and ball, something that he was missing desperately in the World Cup last year.
“It is really pleasing to have him back. Hardik at his best is a fantastic cricketer with both bat and ball. He’s been very successful in white-ball cricket and has shown some really good form in this IPL as well,”
Dravid said.
The former Indian cricketer and Head Coach of Team India Rahul Dravid was impressed by the captaincy skills of the all-rounder, adding that they are on Pandya to utilize his maximum skills for India.
“His leadership was very impressive in the IPL and he performed well. You don’t have to be designated as a leader to be part of the leadership group.
“At this point in time from our perspective, it is positive that he has started bowling again. It is really about ensuring that we can get the best out of him as a cricketer in terms of contributions.