"I was the bad boy of Indian cricket at that time" - Hardik Pandya sheds light on the testing times after his suspension in 2019

Team India all-rounder Hardik Pandya has turned out to be one of the decade's best finds and was even responsible for the team ending their search for an elusive all-rounder. His journey so far has not been all smooth, with a major wobble coming in the form of a suspension by the BCCI in 2019.

Hardik Pandya and KL Rahul were suspended by the board for their insensitive remarks on a TV show. Pandya missed a large portion of India's tour of Australia and New Zealand and it made impact off the field as well with the public perceiving him in a different way. The all-rounder lost several endorsement deals as well.

Pandya revealed the testing times he endured after the suspension was lifted. He claimed he struggled particularly at the start of the 2019 IPL, despite coming into the tournament in solid form. While speaking to Cricket Monthly, he said:

"When I heard I was going to get suspended, a lot of cricketers who knew me personally, who knew what kind of an individual I am, they went out and spoke about it, which is fine. They thought I was done. I heard lots of people saying, 'Hardik's done, he won't be able to cope with this.' Because I was the bad boy of Indian cricket at that time."

Hardik Pandya set the tournament alight after overcoming the initial struggle. He went on to amass 402 runs at a strike rate of 191.42 at IPL 2019. Apart from that, he contributed with the ball as well with 14 wickets to his name as the Mumbai Indians clinched their 4th title.

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I cried during training because there was a lot of emotion: Pandya

Pandya revealed how he struggled to concentrate after coming out of his suspension.

"At the Chinnaswamy [Bengaluru], while practising, I was missing the ball by this much (shows a wide gap). Because when this is not right (points to head) and when you question yourself, things just go wrong. That day I cried during training because there was a lot of emotion. Because of how I was portrayed [after the talk-show incident]. I was never that individual. I was not able to concentrate on my sport because there was a lot of expectation from myself, leave anyone else."

He added that coach Mahela Jayawardene and brother Krunal Pandya played important roles in helping him get his head space right.

Pandya will feature for Team India in the upcoming T20 World Cup, but his role is yet to be defined. His struggles with injury, which have severely hampered his ability to bowl, means that he will only be able to feature as a pure batsman.