Could this be India's future captain? Shane Watson weighs in
Watson, who was an assistant coach at Delhi Capitals during the tournament, said India had unearthed another captaincy option after Pandya's feats in the IPL.
Under Pandya's leadership, Gujarat had a near-perfect campaign and finished on top of the table after the league stage with 10 wins in 14 matches before sauntering through the knock-outs and seeing off Rajasthan Royals in a one-sided final.
When asked what about Pandya's captaincy stood out in particular, Watson focused on the all-rounder’s attitude to leadership.
"The thing that stood out for me the most was how calm and chilled he was," said Watson on The ICC Review.
"He was upbeat with everything he did – what he did when he batted, in the field and when he bowled as well.
"You could see he really thrived with that leadership opportunity. It was a great opportunity for Hardik to go to a new team, bat at No.4 and show his skill is not just being a power-hitter at the end. But it also showed his captaincy and leadership skills, which he wouldn't have had this year if he was still with the Mumbai Indians.
"It's an incredible opportunity for him and an incredible thing for Indian cricket to know that they have got another leader waiting in the wings if they need someone to step up."
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India has undergone a full change of leadership in the last eight months, with Virat Kohli initially stepping down as white-ball captain and then as Test captain. Rohit Sharma has been given the reins across formats but is 35 and the BCCI will no doubt be looking to groom others over the coming years.
While India has no shortage of options – KL Rahul, Rishabh Pant and Shreyas Iyer are among others that have shown leadership capabilities – Pandya's surge to the IPL trophy will not have gone unnoticed by those making decisions around the team’s future.
"With what I saw during this IPL, he did an incredible job," said Watson. "In the end, that's the skill of a great leader to be able to bring that together. Hardik Pandya did incredibly well.
"It looked like he was able to absorb the pressures of being captain mentally as well. India have discovered another beauty, which is great for them."
However, Watson thinks making any decisions around India’s leadership structure and Pandya this year would be premature.
"Probably not for the current (ICC Men’s) T20 World Cup unless there are a few injuries," said Watson. "But he is certainly ready to go. If there was an opportunity to come up if Rohit Sharma got injured, he is ready to go.
"There aren't too many teams throughout the world who have got someone waiting in the wings like Hardik Pandya."
An all-rounder and a former IPL captain himself, there's perhaps nobody who understands Pandya's role better than Watson and when asked if being an all-rounder offered a unique perspective on captaincy, Watson was firm.
"It certainly does," Watson said. "Understanding from a bowling perspective, you understand probably more than – this is my experience – a captain who is just a batter.
"A lot of the time, they don't exactly know at the top of their mark what's going through an individual's head and how to redirect them to do the right things at the right time to give themselves a better chance of executing their best ball under pressure.
"From my experience, it is a big advantage because you know at the top of your mark what's going on in your head and that's when you can help the person who you are guiding as a leader."