Hardik and Krunal are now enjoying the high cricketing life. But things weren’t always this rosy
Arun Venugopal08-Apr-2016It’s mid-February in Vadodara but the first signs of summer have begun intruding into what have otherwise been pleasant evenings. Good on Hardik Pandya, then, for picking the venerable Moti Bagh – among the oldest and greenest grounds in the country – as our meeting point.He and his brother Krunal have had an unforgettable last few months. Hardik’s career trajectory surged dramatically when an impressive debut T20I series in Australia was followed by greater success at home against Sri Lanka. Unsurprisingly he was named in the Asia Cup and World T20 squads. His older brother, Krunal, on the other hand, went from a long injury-enforced layoff to being picked by Mumbai Indians for Rs 2 crore.The idea was to catch up with the Vadodara boys together, but given their schedules don’t match, there’s no option but to meet them separately. As the sun begins to set, Hardik, 22, has parked himself near the edge of the field after practice and is running his game by his coaches. He looks taller and more muscular than on TV, a sleeveless India jumper giving ample play to his well-sculpted biceps.He gets on the phone with his manager and there is some animated “show me the money” talk to do with contracts and sponsorships. The conversation reflects the swag and street-smartness seen in his cricket. Depending on where you stand, Hardik could range anywhere between expressive and brash, or just “hyper” – as Jitendra Singh, or Jitu [a fake dude] I would have been more scared and concerned about what people think about me. I can’t worry about perceptions. Those who know me understand me.”Hardik says he has been received very warmly in the Indian team. ” type ” [I am the darling of the team.]” He says he has never once felt out of depth. “The guys enjoy watching what I do, and that’s only because I do what I do genuinely. I never knew Mahi ‘ [I was so determined to learn the language].”I firmly believe that it’s very important to know English. I still remember that when I was in Class IX, I wasn’t even able to say ‘Hi’ or ‘Hello’. As extroverted as I am today, I used to be a very shy boy then.”A phrase that frequently finds its way into the conversation is “king-size”. Hardik isn’t coy speaking about his indulgences or being narcissistic. ” style . King-size. Simple funda” [I want to live life king-size but not with ill-gotten gains. It’s as simple as that].”But I want everybody to progress and have a good life. I can’t wish bad things for people, I am not made that way. That’s perhaps why God has helped me rise as quickly as I have.”He received his first paycheck, of Rs 1500, when he was 13, for an age-group tournament. Till a few years ago, he would, along with Krunal, take part in local tournaments in neighbouring districts, where they would get paid. That was their first taste of being paid “professionals”.He goes back to the conversation with his manager and reveals he turned down a contract worth Rs 25 lakh for an apparel brand. “I know I can make more money if I wait a little longer. I know how much I am capable of earning if I perform better. I gamble on myself but I know I will do well.”
“Had I ever been a fake- I would have been more scared and concerned about what people think about me. I can’t worry about perceptions. Those who know me understand me”
He says he is clear-minded enough to not let money come in the way of relationships. He cites the example of his longstanding association with his bat contractor, RNS. “I declined a contract worth several lakh for merely playing with the brand’s sticker on my bat. It was double what I was making in my entire contract with RNS, but RNS was the company that provided me with kits when I could not even afford a bat.”When I started out, I borrowed a couple of bats from Irfan [Pathan] [that was a huge thing],” Krunal says. “What is amazing is how my father left behind a settled business for a six-year-old boy. It wasn’t as if I was on the verge of playing in the Ranji Trophy.” He also recalls being ferried to and from the ground every afternoon for three and a half years by his father, who had to ride his bike upwards of 50 kilometres both ways. Krunal’s kitbag would be squeezed in the front while he would be fast asleep, clutching his father during the half-hour ride.Hardik’s role initially was limited to bouncing around the cricket field. Like in Krunal’s case, the turning pointing in Hardik’s life came when he was six. ” ground [he was just having fun at the ground] when Kiran sir saw him and asked Hardik to report to practice from the next day,” Krunal says.
“What is amazing is how my father left behind a settled business for a six-year-old boy. It wasn’t as if I was on the verge of playing in the Ranji Trophy”Krunal Pandya
Krunal and Hardik then came through the ranks together and even ended up playing in the same U-19 team, where 16-year-old Hardik’s double-century helped Baroda gun down a steep target against Mumbai. The “228” on the back of Hardik’s Mumbai Indians jersey is a nod to the innings.Krunal says there has never been any competition between him and Hardik, but admits to having sibling fights all the time. “If a stranger sees us fight he would be absolutely convinced we are sworn enemies,” Krunal says with a laugh. “We fight every day over little things, but all it takes is two minutes for us to patch up.”After Hardik was selected for the national side he playfully taunted me by asking how it felt to be the brother of an Indian cricketer. After the IPL auction this year I responded by asking him how it felt to be the brother of a billionaire cricketer,” he laughs. “But we can’t live without each other. Whenever he does well I am happier than he is and vice-versa.”They received a blow in the late 2000s when Himanshu developed health complications, which in turn triggered financial troubles. Ten years after moving to Vadodara, he realised that his car-finance business hadn’t picked up in the new city and went back to Surat to open a passport consultancy. But by 2010-11, Himanshu, a diabetic, suffered three heart attacks in two years. There was no choice but to wind up the new enterprise, which meant that the family’s lone source of income was cut. “We had bought a Toyota Etios just a few months before papa’s heart attack, but we didn’t have enough money to pay the instalment dues,” Krunal says.Both Krunal and Hardik say it was difficult for people to come to terms with the fact that they had fallen on bad times. “People would say, ‘Come on, they own a car. How can they be struggling?'” Krunal says. “What people didn’t know was, we would fill up petrol for Rs 150 and get by. Whenever the car ran dry, we would just about make enough money to buy a bottle of petrol. But we never told anyone this. We didn’t want to gain sympathy. We value our formality ” [Sit down. We are not big on formality].Hardik and Krunal have spoken to me about not keeping secrets from their parents. “My family is definitely a chilled-out one. I always keep joking that we are not a 21st-century family but a 31st-century one,” Krunal says with a laugh. “Each of us knows what’s going on in the others’ lives. I can directly go and talk to my parents about anything. Our parents know where we go, which female friends we meet and stuff.”When I ask Himanshu about the easy-going environment, Hardik interjects: “My father was a very modern man himself in his younger days. It’s better I don’t elaborate further,” he says with a laugh. Hardik believes that the freedom his brother and he were given from a young age ensured they did not go astray. “I always believe that only when limitations are set, people try to cross the line. When there are no restrictions, you aren’t desperate. I set my boundaries clearly: there are certain things I resolved not to do – I won’t elaborate on them – and I still don’t. I decided I won’t smoke and I don’t.”Their mother, Nalini, says there were relatives who disapproved of such parenting, but she wouldn’t have done it any other way. “We keep arguing, fighting among ourselves but never let one another down. We have never forced anything on them. When Hardik was more keen on cricket than studying, we never forced him to do otherwise.”Himanshu admits to being staggered at times at the speed with which Hardik has progressed, and hopes for his boys to emulate the famous cricketing siblings from Vadodara – the Pathan brothers. “I have never had to control him. He takes after me in regards to being aggressive,” he says. “I felt very happy when Shane Bond complimented him as ‘a good one’ and also when Ricky Ponting called him a rock star. My only desire is to see both the brothers play for India for a long time.”