It was a grand homecoming for Hardik Pandya here on Monday as a legion of fans welcomed the all-rounder, a key component in India’s T20 World Cup triumph in the Americas, to the city, waving the national flag and chanting his name.
Quite reminiscent of the open-top bus parade of the Indian team from Marine Drive into the iconic Wankhede Stadium in Mumbai, Pandya’s fans arranged a grand show for him here.
The overjoyed cricketer, wearing the Team India jersey, waved to his fans and acknowledged their cheers, as captured in a PTI Video.
The open-top bus with the banner “Hardik Pandya - Pride of Vadodara” weaved its way past the streets filled with appreciative fans with huge posters dotting the entire stretch of the road.
Pandya emerged as one of the standout performers for India taking 11 wickets and scoring 144 runs at a strike rate of 150 during the World Cup.
But his best performance came in the title showdown against South Africa where he broke the back of the opposition with excellent figures of 3/20, and his victims were Heinrich Klaasen, David Miller, who was superbly caught by Suryakumar Yadav at the boundary ropes, and Kagiso Rabada, The selectors reposed faith in Pandya’s all-round ability and big-match temperament despite the cricketer’s modest run during this season’s IPL for Mumbai Indians.
During the IPL, Pandya, who took over MI captain from Rohit Sharma, was booed at every venue, but he took his game to a higher level during the World Cup to play a key part in the World Cup triumph.
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