Still can't believe my dream has been fulfilled, elates Krunal Pandya

Still can't believe my dream has been fulfilled, elates Krunal Pandya

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Krunal Pandya has opened up about his struggle and stated that he and Hardik had one bat each even at the Ranji Trophy level and had to request teammates for a spare bat when their bat broke. Pandya further added that he constantly pinches himself to believe that whatever has happened is real.

The struggle of the Pandya brothers from nothing to becoming two of the highest-paid cricketers in the world has been a heartening one. After Hardik made himself a regular fixture in the Mumbai Indians set-up, Krunal then joined him and in the 2018 IPL auction, becoming the highest-paid uncapped player in the league. However, that doesn't make him forget the past as the confident Vadodara cricketer stated that he constantly pinches himself to believe that whatever has happened is real.

“I have to keep pinching myself every 10-15 days to believe that this is actually real, that this is our life now. At that time a good-quality English willow bat was at least Rs. 7000-8000, which was a huge amount then. Plus, both Hardik and I were playing, so my father had double the responsibility on his shoulders. I remember when we were playing for Vadodra in the Vijay Hazare tournament. Hardik had one bat which was gifted to him by Irrfan Pathan, and I had another," Krunal recalled on Cricbuzz's Spicy Pitch.

He further went on to describe the incident that when both of them had to bat together in the same game, the Pandya senior had to ask a teammate for a spare bat so that he can bat. Pandya was visibly emotional while revealing the aspect and added that he is grateful for the way life has panned out for him.

"Just before a crucial game, Hardik’s bat broke. He was batting at number 3 while I was batting at 6. Hardik decided to take my bat and go into the game. It so happened that Hardik was still on the crease and I had to go out to bat next. And I didn’t even have a bat. I finally found a teammate with a spare bat and requested him to give it to me. That’s how bad things were even at the Ranji Trophy level.”

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