Former Indian captain Sunil Gavaskar didn’t hold back in his critique of Hardik Pandya following Mumbai Indians’ fourth defeat in the IPL. He didn’t mince words, pointing out Pandya’s lackluster performance in both bowling and captaincy.
Mumbai Indians are having a tough time in the IPL 2024 with Hardik Pandya leading the charge as their new captain. Despite being five-time champions, they’ve only managed to secure two wins out of six games so far. Their latest defeat came at the hands of their rivals, the Chennai Super Kings, on their home turf at the Wankhede Stadium.
In the 29th match of the tournament, Chennai Super Kings dominated the game, clinching a 20-run victory over Mumbai Indians. Hardik Pandya, the captain, faced criticism for his performance. Despite not being at his best against CSK, he bowled the final over of the match and was smashed for three consecutive sixes by MS Dhoni, allowing CSK to reach a total of 206 runs in the first innings.
Since taking over as captain, Pandya has faced boos and jeers from disappointed fans. His performance and decisions on the field have also drawn criticism from cricket legends like Sunil Gavaskar and former England captain Kevin Pietersen.
Sunil Gavaskar, in particular, expressed deep disappointment in Pandya’s leadership and performance. The 74-year-old cricket veteran didn’t hold back, describing Pandya’s captaincy as “ordinary” and his bowling as “some of the worst” he’s seen in a long time.
“Probably the worst kind of bowling that I’ve seen for a long, long time. It almost looks like I’ve had this embrace with my hero. I’ve got the kind of deliveries that he’s gonna hit for sixes. One six is fine. The next one is a length ball when you know this batter is hunting for a length ball that he wants to hit. Third ball is again a full toss on the legs when you know he [Dhoni] is looking for a six,” Gavaskar said on Star Sports.
Additionally, Gavaskar criticized Pandya’s choices as captain during the match against Chennai Super Kings. He suggested that the opposing team should have been limited to approximately 190 runs, but Dhoni’s exceptional performance in the final over changed the outcome entirely.
“Oh, absolutely ordinary bowling, ordinary captaincy. They should have been restricted despite the fact that Ruturaj Gaikwad had batted so well along with Shivam Dube. I do believe that they should have been restricted to 185-190,” Gavaskar said.
Since his first match as MI skipper, Pandya has been on the receiving end of fans’ displeasure, with even the Wankhede Stadium echoing with boos directed at him. Rohit and Virat Kohli had to step in, urging the crowd to ease up a bit.
According to former England captain Kevin Pietersen, the constant external criticism seems to be weighing heavily on the dynamic all-rounder.
“I actually think, with Hardik Pandya, everything away from the game is affecting him so much. He’s smiling too much when he does the toss. He’s trying to act like he is so happy. He is not happy. I have been there. I have been in the firing line. And I can tell you now, it affects you.”
“The boos we have been hearing just now and I know they are happy to see former CSK captain (Dhoni), the lion, smacking him (Hardik) all over the park, it hurts you. Because he has emotions. And he is an Indian player and he doesn’t want to be treated like this. So when this is happening, it’s affecting him, it’s affecting his cricket and something needs to happen.” – Pietersen said.
