All-rounder Krunal Pandya made his ODI debut for Team India against England on Tuesday (March 23). He made a record in his first match and scored 58* runs off 31, reaching the fastest half-century by any ODI debutant in just 26 balls.
The 30-year-old got emotional after scoring a half-century and remembered his father Himanshu Pandya, who passed away in January this year. The debutant also posted a tweet and wrote that he felt his father's presence throughout the innings.
"Papa, with every ball you were always on my mind and in my heart. Tears rolled down my face as I felt your presence with me. Thank you for being my strength, for being the biggest support I’ve had.
"I hope I made you proud. This is for you Papa, everything we do is for you Papa," he wrote on Twitter.
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Hardik Pandya was also part of the first ODI against England. Hardik was seen hugging his elder brother after he broke down during innings break. He shared a tweet for his brother and expressed his happiness over an impactful debut.
"Papa would be proud. He’s smiling down on you bhai and sent an early birthday gift for you. You deserve the world and more. I couldn’t be happier for you bhai. This one is for you Papa @krunalpandya24", he tweeted.
After a half-century, Krunal also bagged a wicket and dismissed Sam Curran. India successfully defended their score of 317/5 and bundled out England on 251 despite their opening pair of Jason Roy (46) and Jonny Bairstow (94) adding 135 for the first wicket in just 14.2 overs.
England's batting line-up collapsed and lost the last seven wickets for just 76 runs. Prasidh Krishna, another debutant for India, bagged four wickets, while Shardul Thakur picked up three wickets.
