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A nod of head followed by a match-winning 6: Inside Hardik Pandya's elite mindset

image-l7hu9immHardik Pandya finished off in style against Pakistan (PC: Twitter)

"We fought hard, we fought real hard and we will continue to fight",  these lines by Hardik Pandya after he led India to a sensational win over Pakistan with his all-round heroics epitomizes his personality in every sense of the word.

There is a video from Sunday's match that is going viral on social media. That video is from the final over of India's innings when Hardik, after cutting Mohammad Nawaz straight to the cover-point fielder nods his head and asks his partner Dinesh Karthik to stay where he is.

It's almost like he is saying, "Don't worry partner, I've got this covered". Next ball, Hardik smashes Nawaz for a flat six over wide long-on to seal the deal or in Ravi Shastri's words: "Pandyaaaaaaa…finished it off in style"

As per cricket logic, Hardik's decision to get the job done by himself made complete sense as he eats left-arm spin for fun.

But, then, such is the pressure of an Indo-Pak game that all logic and confidence goes for a toss during a crunch moment. 

Hardik Pandya craves limelight

Most players would have tried to get to the other end, which, to be honest, you can't blame them for.

Because, you see, it's all well and good if you get the job done, like Hardik did, but the repercussions if you fail are immense.

Had Hardik failed to nail that six and India lost, the silent supreme confidence in his abilities that he is being hailed for, would have turned into unrelenting criticism around his 'arrogance'. But Hardik doesn't care.

But this piece is not about what happened after Hardik denied the single. It's not about how he finished it off in style. It's about the mindset that went in the making of that final moment.

Hardik craves limelight. He wants to be the guy that everyone talks, raves about. He wants to be THE GUY.

But, the thing is, you can't become 'THE GUY' just because you want to be one. And I'm not even talking about the skills part here; that's non-negotiable.

Hardik Pandya relishes being pushed to a corner

It's about having a calm but strong head on your shoulders and the ability to handle the repercussions when it doesn't come off.

Coz, let's face it. In sports at the elite level, you are not going to succeed everyday. And, Hardik knows that. He has personally experienced that. He has been cancelled, written off by the public on several occasions, but for someone who has seen far far worse adversities like Pandya has, a cricketing setback ain't going to unsettle him.

In fact, it empowers him. Because, you see, when you are pushed to a corner, you have nothing to lose. This also gives you a golden opportunity to turn yourself into a hero.

Over the course of the last six months, be it the IPL final or the ODI series decider in England, Hardik has done exactly that. He has made adversity his biggest ally and has hogged the limelight he craves for.

On Sunday, at a venue where he was stretchered off 4 years ago, Hardik sensed that opportunity again, and with a nod of head and the eventual match-winning six, a "Pantomime villain" became a folk hero.

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