Published 17:49 IST, February 23rd 2021
Krunal Pandya reveals late father's special motivational call for him, MI star lauded
Krunal Pandya dedicates his Vijay Hazare Trophy century to his late father and recalls his last words in an emotional Instagram message.
Krunal Pandya got emotional after scoring the first List A century of his career on Monday in Baroda's victory against Tripura in the Vijay Hazare Trophy match in Surat. Krunal Pandya dedicated this knock to his late father who passed away in January this year. His father had told him that his time had just started and it seems to have begun indeed.
Krunal Pandya Vijay Hazare Trophy 2021
In the Vijay Hazare Trophy 2021 Elite Group A match held between Baroda and Tripura in Surat on Feb 22, 2021, Baroda beat Tripura in a nail-biting contest. Tripura made a total of 302/7 in their 50 overs which was chased down by Baroda in 49 overs. The chase was led by Baroda's captain, Krunal Pandya, who received support from Vishnu Solanki at the other end. Pandya scored a crucial 127 off 97 balls while Solanki contributed 97 to the total, leading Baroda to a victory by six wickets.
Krunal Pandya shares emotional message of his father
Indian cricketer Krunal Pandya's father, Himanshu Pandya, sadly passed away on January 16th as a result of a cardiac arrest. Consequently, he could not fulfil his dream to see his son score a century in the game. Krunal took to Instagram to make sure he shared the conversation he had with his father a few days before the latter's demise.
After the MI batsman scored a century in the Vijay Hazare Trophy, he posted his father's last words. "MY SON, YOUR TIME HAS JUST STARTED," posted Pandya. Although his father will sadly not be there to see his future games, his motivation will always remain, and it is this motivation that Krunal will use in his future career. Krunal will hope that he can dedicate more such knocks to his late father. Take a look at the post here:
Krunal Pandya IPL 2021 salary
Mumbai Indians will certainly be impressed by Krunal Pandya's knock against Tripura and will look forward to having their rockstar in their team which is full of talented players. Fans, too, lauded the MI star for his knock as one can see in the reactions below. One fan posted, "Definitely a father's vision and love for you..."
As per reports, Krunal Pandya receives a salary of ₹ 8.8 crores (US$ 1.2 million) from Mumbai Indians. MI had bought the all-rounder in the 2016 season and Pandya has remained with the squad ever since. MI players and fans will be hoping that Pandya can continue delivering for the team as soon as the IPL 2021 season gets underway.
Updated 17:49 IST, February 23rd 2021