'Uspe sirf menu tha ki practice pe hamaara menu kya hoga' - Ashish Nehra reveals reason behind carrying paper while coaching GT

Gujarat Titans had the best start to their Indian Premier League campaign as the Hardik Pandya-led side went on to lift the coveted cup in their maiden stint. The all-rounder, who had himself recovered from a protracted injury absence, put in solid performances throughout the 15th edition of the cash-rich event.

He and coach Ashish Nehra led the Titans to the top of the group stage standings, and they went on to win the championship after defeating Rajasthan Royals in the summit clash at the Narendra Modi Stadium in Ahmedabad in front of more than lakhs of audiences at the venue. With that win, Nehra also became the first Indian head coach to win an IPL trophy.

Nehra received plaudits for his uncomplicated coaching techniques throughout the season; in contrast to other coaches, Nehra was frequently spotted holding a piece of paper in his hand. Despite the fact that this also gave rise to numerous Twitter memes, the former India cricketer has comically disclosed what he truly wrote on the paper.

“There was nothing on the paper. I don't know why everyone believes there was something important on the paper. Paper pe sirf menu tha ki practice pe hamaara menu kya hoga (It only had menu for our practice session),” Nehra hilariously said when asked about the paper during a chat on Cricbuzz).

I'm no super coach, I was also a spectator sitting outside: Nehra

Nehra emphasised that he is far from being a "super coach" and claimed that he is simply a spectator, despite the presenter in the conversation introducing him as such.

“I'm no super coach. Just like you, I was also a spectator sitting outside. When the team wins, you talk about all these things. All coaches put on a lot of hard work and sometimes , you get the results of that. Our first year at Gujarat Titans was really good and we are happy,” Nehra added.

Gujarat Titans played at their home ground for the first time in the IPL 2022, directly in the final, because the league stage of the competition was spread out among four locations in Mumbai, Navi Mumbai, and Pune, and the home-away format was dropped to lessen the threat of COVID-19.