Hardik Pandya knows a thing or two about making a statement. Whether it’s striking a pose by shrugging in front of the T20 World Cup trophy like it’s business as usual or wearing the snazziest piece of wrist bling in the stadium if not the state of New York, Pandya is all about style. When it came to his turn to lift the T20 trophy Pandya chose to wear an extremely rare Audemars Piguet Royal Oak Frosted Gold Double Balance Wheel Openworked – a name that packs as much heat as the watch. Everything from the case, bezel, bracelet and clasp is made of solid 18k rose gold. Take a closer look (if you’re lucky enough to do so) and you’ll see that the rose gold surface has a frosted appearance, making it even more alluring.
India’s Vice-Captain Hardik Pandya wore this ultra-luxury watch while lifting the T20 World Cup trophy. Find out it’s cost
When launched in 2018, the watch, understandably enough, caused quite a stir. It featured a brand new calibre with an all-new openworked double balance wheel mechanism. Released with a 41mm case, it even throws-in applied rose gold hour markers for good measure. But if that hasn’t caught your eye, the 32 baguette-cut rainbow coloured sapphires ought to. No, the watch doesn’t have any grand complications, because that would be overkill. This is first and foremost a statement piece, and the statement with a watch this grand usually can be paraphrased down to “I’m rich. Deal with it”.
As can be evidenced by the highly intricate nature of the openwork dial, this is quite a mechanical heavyweight, with not one but two balance wheels working to ensure greater stability and precision thanks to the presence of an oscillator. The other noteworthy aspect, if you can pry your eyes away from the sapphires, is the exquisite finishing on the componentry. Everything you see here is hand finished, including the dial which gets a gunmetal finish to offset all that glittering, frosted gold. With a sticker price of Rs 3.6 crore, it’s one of those rare pieces in the pantheon of luxury timepieces, that are tastefully ostentatious.
