Former Indian opener, Wasim Jaffer played in an era when India’s batting was dominated by the Fab 5. For years, Virender Sehwag, Sachin Tendulkar, Rahul Dravid, Sourav Ganguly, and VVS Laxman shouldered India’s Test batting responsibility, making it extremely tough for any other batter to make a case.

Despite this, Wasim Jaffer made a lasting impression, scoring  1944 runs in 31 Tests, including five centuries and 11 fifties. He smashed a couple of double-centuries as well, the first of which was 212 against the West Indies in 2006 and the second of which was 202 against Pakistan at home the following year. Jaffer’s century against South Africa in Cape Town in 2007 will always be remembered by the gans.

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While Jaffer’s international career did not reach the heights that his domestic career with Mumbai and Vidarbha did. However, India’s star rounder Hardik Pandya has stated that the seasoned Mumbai batter was his favorite cricketer as a kid. While most modern cricketers idolize Tendulkar, Dravid, and Laxman, Pandya always idolized Jaffer while growing up and he even ranked the Mumbai veteran above all other legends.

During a recent chat on SG podcast, Hardik Pandya said, “Like everyone, I had favorite cricketers. I liked Jacques Kallis, Virat, Sachin sir. There are so many greats that you can’t pick. My favorite cricketer was actually Wasim Jaffer. I used to love watching him bat. Someone I always placed him above other legends. Somehow, I used to copy his batting, but I was never able to get his class.”

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Hardik Pandya also explained the benefits of having his brother on and off the pitch in his relationship with Krunal. Both were distinct players as children, so while there was no sibling rivalry, Hardik and Krunal pushed each other to keep improving.