Gujarat Titans will miss Hardik Pandya but I never tried to convince him to stay: Ashish Nehra

Gujarat Titans head coach Ashish Nehra said that while the former Indian Premier League (IPL) champions will miss Hardik Pandya’s presence as their leader, he never tried to convince the all-rounder to stay in the franchise instead of returning to the Mumbai Indians .

Pandya and Nehra had formed quite the potent captain-coach pairing at the Titans and led the team to the title on IPL debut in 2022 after the former parted ways with five-time champions Mumbai Indians ahead of that year’s mega auction. GT would then make it two finals in as many editions, losing the summit clash against Chennai Super Kings (CSK) last year.

Pandya, however, would return to the franchise from where he began his IPL journey in 2015 and first entered the cricketing limelight in a high-profile, all-cash trade in November ahead of the player auction, the development of which sent shockwaves across the cricketing circles. MI would then raise even more eyebrows by making Pandya their captain, bringing Rohit Sharma’s decade-long, trophy laden reign as skipper to an abrupt end.

Explained | Why Gujarat Titans allowed Hardik Pandya to join Mumbai Indians?

“In any sport, you have to move on. You cannot buy experience and to replace someone like Hardik Pandya or (an injured) Mohammed Shami isn’t going to be easy. But that’s a learning curve and that’s how team moves forward,” Nehra told mediapersons in Ahmedabad on Saturday.

Pandya-Nehra combination had worked wonders for GT in their first two seasons and the inevitable question arose whether the head coach tried to stop the skipper from joining Mumbai Indians.

“I never tried to convince Pandya to stay back. As you play more, you gain experience. I could have stopped him had he gone to any other franchise. He (Pandya) played here for two years but he has gone to a team (MI), where he has played previously for 5-6 years,” Nehra was frank in his admission.

Read | MI coach explains why Hardik Pandya replaced Rohit Sharma as captain

The way Pandya’s transfer took place, Nehra feels that day isn’t far away when IPL goes the European club football way.

“The manner in which the sport (cricket) is moving, we will have trades and transfers like we see in international soccer. It’s a new challenge for him and may be he will learn something new and we wish him the best.”

We will help Gill grow as a leader

Nehra was predictably asked about how he looked at Shubman Gill’s elevation as the skipper and how he would manage a team full of seniors.

“As a new captain, I want to see how he (Gill) operates and not just me, the whole India would like to see because he is that kind of a player,” the former left-arm seamer said.

“He is looking to play and do well in all three formats, so we as a franchise would like to help him grow more as a person than as a captain. If he grows as a person, he will grow more as a captain going forward and get better and better,” the coach said.

Factbox | Everything you need to know about Gujarat Titans ahead of IPL 2024

He cited Pandya’s example when he was roped in 2022 as the team’s skipper.

“Before Hardik joined GT, he had no prior experience of captaining any side. There are 10 IPL teams and you will see more and more new captains. Shreyas Iyer and even Nitish Rana did captaincy for KKR. Let’s see which guy capitalises moving ahead.”

Replacement of injured players

The 2011 World Cup winner is bullish about his team’s possible replacements with Shami ruled out following a surgery on his Achilles tendon and Rashid Khan recuperating from a back surgery.

“IPL is now a 12-people game (Impact Player added) and to fill in Hardik and Shami’s shoes, it is not going to be easy but we have enough people. We have Umesh Yadav, who have been playing the IPL for more than 12 years,” Nehra said.

He is also hopeful that Tamil Nadu skipper R Sai Kishore, who got 55 wickets in Ranji Trophy, will deliver the goods.

“Sai Kishore didn’t play (much) last year, but he has been doing so well. So every year you will be seeing new new guys, you have to believe in yourself and prepare for that,” he said.

When asked if Rashid doesn’t get fit in time, Nehra said: “About spinners, its not that we don’t have experienced spinners. We have Jayant Yadav and Sai Kishore. I am a firm believer of playing to your strengths. In Chennai and Lucknow, there will be slow tracks and we need to be prepared.”

The coach also informed that rookie Jharkhand keeper-batter Robin Minz, who recently met with a bike accident in Ranchi, is unlikely to play IPL this year.

“It is unfortunate but we were also excited about a guy like Minz,” the coach concluded.

With PTI inputs