Krunal Pandya was named the Player of the Match for taking three wickets against Kolkata Knight Riders in the Indian Premier League 2025. He broke KKR’s back, taking the scalps of Ajinkya Rahane, Venkatesh Iyer, and Rinku Singh. Royal Challengers Bengaluru defeated the host franchise by 7 wickets in 16.2 overs while chasing 175. Apart from him, Virat Kohli and Phil Salt also contributed, scoring fifties in the winning cause. He spoke about himself and his younger brother, Hardik Pandya, who is the captain of Mumbai Indians.
Mumbai fans booed Hardik for replacing Rohit Sharma as captain in the 17th season. He separated from his wife, Natasa Stankovic, and was not considered for Team India’s captaincy in T20Is after Rohit’s retirement. On the other hand, Krunal hasn’t been able to impress the national selectors, and Lucknow Super Giants did not retain the all-rounder.
Krunal replied to his critics after the contest at the Eden Gardens. “You can break us, you can shatter us, but you can’t kill us. We will always come back. We are pretty close as a family. Hardik has been through a lot in the last few years, and I haven’t said anything about it,” he said.
“He (Hardik) stood tall and gave match-winning performances. He cried after winning the T20 World Cup, and it showed what it meant to him. I was really happy for him,” he added.