“I always felt that if I give any answer, it would be through sport”: Hardik Pandya reflects on last six months in interaction with PM Modi

In an interaction with Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi on July 4, vice-captain Hardik Pandya said he always believed in answering critics with his performances. The criticism started when Hardik replaced Rohit Sharma as the captain of the Mumbai Indians for the IPL 2024.

Hardik was booed in every stadium he went to play in during the IPL. However, he came back strongly and proved his mettle in the T20 World Cup. Hardik scored 144 runs at a strike rate of more than 150 and took 11 wickets.

Team India landed in New Delhi in the early hours of July 4 from Barbados. The Men in Blue met PM Modi, who invited them for breakfast to celebrate their World Cup triumph. PM Modi also interacted with players, and Hardik Pandya shared his experiences of the last six months with him, stating:

"Last six months have been very entertaining for me. There have been a lot of ups and downs. Many things have happened like people have booed me. I always felt that if i give any answer, it would be through sport, I won’t speak anything. I believed and worked hard and there was great support from the captain and coach," Hardik said.

The all-rounder was outstanding in the final played in Barbados on June 29. He first provided the important breakthrough for Heinrich Klassen and then bowled the match-winning last over. The Indian vice captain was brilliant and held his nerves to lift the Men in Blue's second T20 World Cup as they defeated South Africa by seven runs.

Hardik Pandya became the top-ranked all-rounder in the latest ICC men's T20Is ranking.

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“India, you mean the world to me”: Hardik Pandya thanked fans for their support post-victory parade

On July 5, Team India held an open-top bus victory parade from Nariman Point to Wankhede Stadium, which was attended by thousands of people. Hardik Pandya thanked fans for showing up in large numbers and wrote the following in an Instagram post:

"India, you mean the world to me! From the bottom of my heart, thank you for all the love.. these are moments that I will never ever forget! Thank you for coming out to celebrate with us, despite the rains! We love you so much!

"Celebrating with you is why we do what we do! We’re all champions! All 1.4 billions of us! Thank You Mumbai, thank you India, Hardik wrote.

BCCI also awarded Team India a cash prize of INR 125 crore for winning the 2024 T20 World Cup.