Krunal Pandya was handed his India debut in the first T20I against West Indies in Kolkata on Sunday
With his debut Krunal Pandya. became India's 78th T20 player while Khaleel was handed the 77th cap before the start the of the match at the Eden Gardens. Both the players received their caps from stand-in captain Rohit Sharma.
And as Pandya Sr made his debut, his younger brother had message for him. In a video posted on Instagram, Pandya congratulated his elder brother and mentioned how it has been a long cherished dream for both of them to play for India.
Well done boy! This is what we dreamt of and finally who have achieved them. I miss being there personally now. But I am so happy for you. All the hard work you have been doing has finally paid off. This is actually a dream for us. Just enjoy. Lot’s of love from my side. Go for it my boy. Lots of love. You are gonna kill it.Hardik Pandya
After Irfan Pathan and Yousuf Pathan, the Pandya brothers are second pair of siblings from Baroda to represent India in T20I.
Pandya Sr. finished with figures of 1/15 in his 4 overs, accounting for the wicket of his Mumbai Indians teammate Keiron Pollard.
Earlier, Krunal was part of the T20I squad in England but didn't play a game there. He had replaced an injured Axar Patel.
Pandya made a strong case for himself after consistent show in the Indian Premier League for Mumbai Indians over the past few editions and then following it up with good spell under Rahul Dravid for the India A side.
Like his younger brother, Pandya's ability to contribute with both bat and ball made him a good choice, especially in the absence of his brother Hardik. Krunal may be best option available for the shortest format of the game.
So far, in his 62 T20 games, Pandya has scored 967 runs at an average of 26.86 and picked up 51 wickets as well.
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