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When Gujarat Titans lock horns with Rajasthan Royals in the 23rd match of IPL 2023 on Sunday (April 16), there will be one player who will have his eyes lit up looking at the opponents: Hardik Pandya.
In his 110-match IPL career so far, the Gujarat Titans skipper has been part of many memorable matches with starring performances in both departments.
But the all-rounder's stature grows exponentially against his favorite opponent RR, against whom he averages 86.75, having amassed 347 runs in 10 innings with a remarkable SR of 170.10. He has also picked up nine wickets in these matches, which exemplifies the fact that Hardik Pandya just likes playing against the Royals.
Here we are listing Hardik Pandya's three best performances against the Rajasthan Royals in the IPL.
#3. 40* (27), and 1/14 against RR, 2022
On a flat Eden Gardens wicket where the ball was coming onto the bat nicely with short boundaries, the Rajasthan batsmen looked in omniscient touch and were looking for a total in excess of 200 with Jos Buttler, Sanju Samson, and Devdutt Paddikal going berserk.
Hardik not only bowled two tidy overs but also chipped in with the wicket of a dangerous-looking Paddikal, returning with a figure of 1/14, and played an instrumental role in restricting RR to 188/6.
In response, Gujarat found themselves in trouble with a scorecard reading of 85/3 in the 10th over of the needed 104 at a run rate greater than 10. Hardik joined David Miller at the crease and started playing percentage cricket without taking too many risks initially, hitting occasional boundaries here and there.
But the duo, after getting set, started taking their chances, selecting bowlers among their positive match-ups.
With 16 needed off the last over, Miller smoked three sixes to finish the game, with Hardik Pandya finishing with a score of 40* (27).
#2 60* (21) against RR, 2020
In a night game on an Abu Dhabi pitch where dew played a crucial role, Rajasthan invited the Mumbai Indians to bat first, and that decision seemed to be paying dividends as MI were reeling at 101/4 after the 13th over.
Anything less than 180-185 would have been insufficient for the strong Rajasthan batting unit, and MI desperately needed runs, and that too at a fast pace.
Hardik Pandya then arrived at the crease and started tonking the RR bowlers to all parts of the ground, smoking seven sixes in his blistering knock of 60* (27), which propelled MI's total to 195/5. However, that score was not enough as a whirlwind knock of 107 (60) from Ben Stokes made a mockery of the total, and they chased it down with nine balls to spare.
#1 87* (52), and 1/18 against RR, 2022
DY Patil Stadium witnessed a masterclass from all-rounder Hardik Pandya on a pitch that was by no means an easy track to bat on.
Gujarat Titans were jolted early as they lost two quick wickets within the third over with only 15 runs on the board, bringing Hardik to the crease. The 15/2 quickly turned into a 53/3, and GT were all looking at sea, hoping for their skipper to bail them out.
Hardik found an able supporter in Abhinav Manohar, and both players looked to revive the innings. While the latter was looking to play the accumulator role, Hardik started counter-attacking and plundering every bowler without any discrimination.
His unbeaten 87 from 52 deliveries helped Gujarat post a mammoth total of 192/4, which proved too much for RR, as they fell short by 37 runs, with Hardik returning with figures of 1/18.
