Hardik Pandya shares his fitness regime amid personal, professional struggles
What's the story
Indian all-rounder Hardik Pandya recently shared details about his fitness routines at the launch of his sports apparel brand.
This comes amidst his separation from wife Natasa Stankovic after four years of marriage and losing the Indian T20 team captaincy to Suryakumar Yadav for the upcoming Sri Lanka tour.
Pandya highlighted pushing limits, saying that when the mind gets tired, he encourages his body to keep going, believing there's always extra effort available.
Captaincy setback
Pandya's captaincy hopes dashed amid fitness concerns
Despite his fitness dedication, Pandya's prospects of becoming captain were hampered by doubts about his ability to play all three formats of the game and bowl extensively in limited-overs games, particularly ODIs.
However, he remained a pivotal figure in India's T20 World Cup victory earlier this month.
His removal from a leadership role coincided with the announcement of his divorce, adding to the challenges he faces both personally and professionally.
Fitness philosophy
Pandya advocates mental strength, exceeding expectations in fitness
Despite facing personal and professional hurdles, Pandya demonstrated resilience during his public appearance at the brand launch.
He emphasized the importance of mental strength in achieving physical fitness goals and pushing one's limits during training sessions.
He mentioned that whenever his trainer instructs him to do 10 push-ups, he consistently ends up doing 15.
The cricketer encouraged others on a fitness journey to focus on surpassing their barriers daily.
Recognition
Pandya's fitness dedication recognized by chief selector
Pandya revealed his highest Yo-Yo test score is 21.7, nearing the upper limit.
He credits his strong fitness base to his early commitment to intense training, even before he fully understood body fitness.
Chief selector Ajit Agarkar has praised Pandya, calling him the "only player in the country to do what he can do."
Despite recent setbacks, including personal and professional challenges, Pandya's dedication to fitness and pushing his limits remains steadfast.
Strong base
Early training and a strong fitness foundation
He mentioned that he initially didn't understand the impact of fitness but always aimed to be the best in everything he did.
As a result, he trained hard and pushed himself from a young age, running a lot to build a strong base.
Despite limited knowledge about body fitness and advanced training techniques at the time, his solid foundation and dedication to basic training helped him succeed at higher levels.