IPL 2018 | Hardik Pandya claims being positive about his game comes off

IPL 2018 | Hardik Pandya claims being positive about his game comes off

61

Written by: SportsCafe Desk

no photo

Hardik Pandya, who won the Man of the Match award in Mumbaiā€™s win against Kolkata Knight Riders, claims that he is confident and positive about his game and this eventually pays off. Pandya took two wickets against Kolkata, which helped him top the list of highest wicket-takers with 14 wickets.

Hardik Pandya scored an unbeaten 35 runs off 20 balls against Kolkata Knight Riders to help Mumbai reach an eventual match-winning total of 181 at Wankhede Stadium in Mumbai on Sunday. Then he tookĀ two wickets for 19 runs and ensured victory for the Mumbai Indians by 13 runs. He was adjudged Man of the Match for his brilliant all-round performance and post the match, he stated that his positive attitude is helping him.Ā 

"I am not doing anything (different). It is just that someday it comes off. I have stopped practising (batting). I am someone who thinks differently. I am actually just being positive. It's all about one hit, to be honest. You score one six and all of a sudden the momentum shifts and everything changes," Pandya said after the match.

"Obviously if people bowl well I have (to) respect (them) and can't do anything. No one can do anything. My game is something that I am positive (about) from my mind and it comes off," the hard-hitting batsman added.

In the process of getting aĀ victory for his team, he also managed to snatch the purple cap and became the highest wicket taker with 14 wickets. Hardik Pandya stated that he didnā€™t aim for the cap, but was happy to get it.Ā Ā 

"It is a good thing. It was not my effort. Koshish nahithi (had not strived for it). But the cap is there if you take wickets and I am happy," he remarked about wearing the purple cap. The team is quite positive and we have to think that we are going to make it. As a team we believe that we can do this and we have done it in the past though it is a bit difficult to do it," he said about MI's back-to-back wins.

KKR didnā€™t get off to a flyer with Shubman Gill and Chris Lynn opening the innings and were 28 for 2 in the fourth over. The move got backlash from various quarters as Narine was successful in getting off to a good start. But, Losing team's captain Dinesh Karthik revealed that he had to change the opening pair as regular innings launcher Sunil Narine felt unwell.

"He was not feeling well, that's why he went out of the field in the 18th-19th over," said Karthik.

Karthik defended his move of not giving the bowl to Andre Russell in the fag end of the innings and insisted that Russell has a defined role in the team and that would bring out the best in him.Ā 

"Yes, that's true but we have a certain role for Russell in the team on what stage of the game he bowls. On this day he bowled well but on other days he goes for boundaries. Over a period of days we have figured out how to get the best out of him.

"I thought I could take on Bumrah, hit him for a couple of sixes and backed myself to get 20 in the last over. Sometimes it does not go your way. (We) still got 14 runs off that over. He got good bounce. Credit to Bumrah, he bowled well," he added.

Get updates! Follow us on

Open all