After vice-captaincy snub, Gautam Gambhir engages in deep dialog with Hardik Pandya in India observe

Things have not been great for Hardik Pandya in the India Cricket Team T20I setup. It was expected that Hardik would take over the reins of the team after Rohit Sharma’s retirement. But that was not the case to be. Under Gautam Gambhir, the captaincy in the shortest format of the game was given to Suryakumar Yadav and Axar Patel is now the vice-captain of the squad.

After the captaincy snub, it was expected that Hardik Pandya would at least be the vice-captain but alas. During India’s practice on Sunday at the Eden Gardens, Hardik and Gambhir were spotted hand in the middle of the ground engaged in a long conversation. No, it was not a short conversation, the duo were in a deep conversation that waged on for at least half an hour.

The proceedings took place when the rest of the players were busy with batting and bowling drills after the initial fielding drills. Gautam Gambhir and Hardik Pandya continued to have a long conversation with each other while captain Suryakumar Yadav was busy with his sprint and endurance drills.

Hardik after that went on to bowl for roughly 40 minutes. He was constantly instructed on the line and length of his deliveries by Morne Morkel. After the bowling stint, Hardik again had a brief conversation with Gambhir before returning to the pitch, this time to bat.

Hardik predominantly practiced pinch-hitting. He took on heavy throwdown, lofting huge hits into the stands, showcasing his batting prowess. Pandya saw some brilliant connection of the willow with the leather, as he looked in deft touch. After Hardik, it was Rinku Singh who took on the slog-hitting practice. While Hardik was waiting for his turn, he continued to have another conversation with Gambhir, SKY, and Mohammed Shami.