Star India allrounder Hardik Pandya, who has been leading the Indian T20I side of late, and his wife Natasa Stankovic renewed their wedding vows on Tuesday.
“We celebrated Valentine’s Day on this island of love by renewing the vows we took three years ago. We are truly blessed to have our family and friends with us to celebrate our love,” Hardik Pandya wrote in an Instagram post.
Notably, Hardik and Natasa got engaged on January 1 in 2020, on a yacht and tied the knot in a private ceremony at home during Covid lockdown. They became parents to son Agastya in July, 2020.
Pandya, who had led Gujarat Titans to the IPL 2022 title, has been playing the role of a leader in the India T20I side recently. There s speculation that Pandya is being thought of as a long-term prospect for captaincy in T20Is.
He recently gave a detailed account of how he has tweaked his game as per the requirement of the team.
“I’ve always enjoyed hitting sixes. But that’s life, I’ve to evolve. I’ve believed in partnerships and I want to give my batting partner and my team some assurance and calmness that I’m there. I’ve played more games than any of these guys, I’ve learned how to accept and swallow pressure and make sure everything is calm. Maybe I have to get my strike rate down for that. Taking new roles is always that I look forward to. I want to take the new ball role too because I don’t want anyone to come and take that difficult role. If they’re under pressure, then we are chasing the game. I want to lead the front. I’ve been working on my new ball skills,” Pandya said.
He also suggested that his role is similar to the one which former India captain MS Dhoni had adopted during the latter stages of his international career.
“I don’t mind playing the role that somewhere down the line, Mahi used to play. At that time, I was young and hitting all around the park. But since he’s gone, all of a sudden, that responsibility is onto me. I don’t mind that. We are getting the results. It’s okay if I have to play a little slow,” he added.
A video from Natasa Stankovic and Hardik Pandya’s Christian wedding in Udaipur shows the two of them dancing during their walk down the aisle.