Sanjay Bangar speaks on Dhoni's influence on Pandya

Deep Dasgupta, Waqar Younis and Sanjay Banger with journalist Vimal Kumar 

Former Indian batting coach Sanjay Bangar credited MS Dhoni for Hardik Pandya's progress in his cricketing career.

Pandya held his nerve on Sunday evening as he guided India to a five-wicket win against arch-rivals Pakistan in their Asia Cup 2022 opener in Dubai. After Pandya's heroics in the final over, many people drew similarities between Pandya and Dhoni.

In an exclusive chat with journalist Vimal Kumar in the show - OneCricket's Love of Cricket (LOC). Bangar explained how the senior players have always helped their juniors to improve their game.

"It is the specialty of Indian cricket to learn from their seniors. Sachin always looked up to Sunil Gavaskar, be it Azharuddin or from Dravid to Sehwag, everyone learned something from their seniors," 

Having spent a lot of time in the change room with the ex-Indian skipper, Bangar said that Dhoni's influence and teachings have helped in the development of players like Pandya and Jadeja. He further stated that the Indian team always had a culture where the youngsters learn from seasoned players.

"And yes, MS Dhoni had the ability which I saw, to influence the surrounding. He used to share his thoughts with fellow mates; be it Jadeja when he used to bat at no. 7 for India in the initials, or Hardik when he arrived in national colors. The way he finishes the game, with a calculative approach, in pressure situations. That's what we saw in glimpses from Hardik as well. The influence that the previous generation always had on the current generation, is something that was always present in Indian culture,"

Pandya has often talked about Dhoni’s contribution to shaping his career in the early days. The two cricketers are known to be sharing a very close bond and are often seen catching up whenever they get time from their busy schedules. The star Indian all-rounder seems to have acquired some traits of the World Cup-winning captain which has helped his game.

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