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Vijay Shankar, the versatile all-rounder of the Gujarat Titans (GT), delved into a comparison between the captaincy approaches of current captain Shubman Gill and the former skipper, Hardik Pandya, shedding light on their distinct leadership styles amidst the ongoing Indian Premier League (IPL) 2024 tournament.
Hardik Pandya’s departure and Shubman Gill’s ascension
This analysis comes in the wake of the Gujarat’ performance in the current season, where they have registered two wins and suffered three losses in their initial five matches. Before the 2024 season, Hardik left the Gujarat and joined Mumbai Indians (MI) as a captain. Consequently, the captaincy responsibility fell on the shoulders of young talent Gill, who is leading a side for the first time.
Gujarat’s mixed performance in IPL 2024
Having been the champions of the 2022 edition and runners-up in the IPL 2023 season, the Gujarat commenced their journey in the IPL 2024 with high expectations. However, their campaign so far has been a mixed bag, marked by victories against Mumbai and Sunrisers Hyderabad (SRH), alongside defeats against Chennai Super Kings (CSK), Punjab Kings (PBKS) and Lucknow Super Giants (LSG).
Also READ: IPL 2024: GT’s skipper Shubman Gill reveals the reason behind his team’s setback against LSG
Vijay Shankar discusses the captaincy methods of Gill and Hardik
During the post-match conference after the LSG game, Shankar emphasized that there’s no discernible difference in the captaincy styles of Gill and Hardik. He stressed the importance of team character and players stepping up in challenging moments. The defeat against LSG marked the first loss for the GT against the Lucknow side in the IPL history.
“Absolutely no difference. The only difference is if we’d won today’s game or the last game, things would have looked different. Otherwise, we batted well in the last matches and bowled well in this match. It’s just a collective thing, we can bring up both things together in one game, and that’s when we’ll start winning. That’s what we missed in the last two games,”
“We won two of our first three games. Winning is very important for everyone and we’re trying our best. Sometimes to cross the line, you need extra things and I’m sure the way we’ve worked with the team management, we’ll do well as a team. It’s just about showing character and raising our hands in difficult situations. We’ve lost a few matches but it’s not the end of the road for us. It’s a very long tournament,”
Challenges ahead for Gujarat
Currently positioned seventh in the IPL 2024 points table, Gujarat find themselves in a challenging position as they strive to regain momentum in the tournament. Looking ahead, the Gujarat-based franchise are poised to regroup and refocus their energies as they prepare to take on Rajasthan Royals (RR) in their upcoming fixture at the illustrious Sawai Mansingh Stadium in Jaipur on Wednesday (April 10). This pivotal encounter will presents an opportunity for Gujarat to showcase their resilience and bounce back stronger, reaffirming their competitive prowess in the IPL 2024 tournament.
