Dubai: Hardik Pandya made a fan’s long journey worthwhile after meeting a supporter who travelled from Lucknow to Bengaluru on foot in the hope of meeting the Indian all-rounder. However, after their interaction, the fan faced a turbulent moment later in the day.
The fan, who goes by the Instagram handle Ravi_Rawat_000_king, carried a board with details of his meet with the cricketer during his journey to meet Pandya. According to his earlier videos, he had been in Bengaluru for 10 days before finally getting the opportunity to meet the cricketer.
In a video of their meeting, Pandya put his arm around the fan and asked him about his journey.
“Bohot Badiya (Very good),” Pandya said before asking whether he had walked 1,400 kilometres. The fan explained that he had first travelled to Mumbai before beginning his journey to Bengaluru, which made the total journey over 2,400 km.
Pandya then patted him on the back and said, “Shabaash (well done),”, acknowledging the supporter’s determination. The video has gone viral, garnering over 3 million likes on Instagram in less than 24 hours.
The Mumbai Indians star then offered to arrange a flight or train ticket for the fan to return home as a sweet gesture or a gift.
However, the story took another turn in the fan’s latest video. He claimed that he had lost the flight ticket given to him by Pandya after it slipped out of his pocket.
The fan said he was sitting outside the airport and appealed to people online for financial assistance to help him get home. He has posted his QR code online asking people to transfer him money and even claiming he cannot ask Pandya to help him again.
Pandya recently moved to Bengaluru, having previously lived in Mumbai. The all-rounder remains one of India’s prominent limited-overs players, known for his aggressive batting and ability to contribute with the ball.
The meeting has drawn attention online, but the latest development only made things worse for the fan after having achieved his goal.