Hardik Pandya has been facing a lot of taunts and ire from the fans in this Indian Premier League (IPL) season as the team has been struggling ever since he took over the captaincy of Mumbai Indians from Rohit Sharma.
According to the news agency AFP, the five-time winning team Mumbai Indians handed over the captaincy from Rohit Sharma to all-rounder Hardik Pandya before the start of the IPL season last month.
However, the captaincy has been tough for Hardik Pandya and his team has suffered three consecutive defeats, the latest of which came at the Wankhede Stadium in Mumbai on Monday.
Rohit, 36, has led the team to five IPL titles since taking over from Australia’s Ricky Ponting in 2013 and is an icon in Mumbai.
However, Mumbai’s losing record with skipper Hardik Pandya this season has disappointed the cricket-crazy fans of this country.
Hardik Pandya’s captaincy began with a defeat in Ahmedabad at home to Gujarat Titans, who had earlier won the title under him in their inaugural season in 2022.
‘War of the fans‘
Hardik Pandya, 30, was booed by fans during the toss during the match against Rajasthan Royals on Monday, with commentator Sanjay Manjrikar even having to tell fans to ‘behave well.’
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But the crowd maintained its animosity towards Hardik Pandya, after which Rohit signaled the fans to stop at one point.
Pandya, who was once considered a possible successor to Rohit to captain the Indian T20 team, admitted that it was a ‘difficult night’.
Known for his love of watches, Pandya is looking for a maiden win for Mumbai, who are currently bottom of the points table.
In the previous match of Mumbai Indians against Sunrisers Hyderabad, the fans chanted Rohit Sharma’s name.
Veteran commentator Harsha Bhogle, speaking to Indian website Cricbuzz on the situation, said: ‘What is happening with the IPL is that ‘grouping’ has increased.
Indian spinner Ravichandran Ashwin, who plays for Rajasthan Royals, said fans need to remain calm.
He said on his YouTube channel: ‘People should remember what country these players represent. This is our country.’
Ashwin added, ‘Fan wars should never take such an ugly path.’
He said that IPL fans should see how other countries behave.
Ashwin asked: ‘Have you seen the fight between Joe Root and Zac Crowley fans? Or Joe Root and Jos Buttler (Josh Buttler) fans fighting each other? This is insane. Do you see Steven Smith fans fighting Pat Cummins fans in Australia?’
The situation in Chennai is different
In contrast, Chennai Super Kings handed over the captaincy from Mahendra Singh Dhoni to Rituraj Gaekwad on the occasion of the 17th edition of IPL.
After which the scenario in this team is very different and the 42-year-old wicketkeeper-batsman Dhoni is seen guiding the new captain Gaekwad from behind the stumps.
Dhoni has managed to balance the role of a mentor and a player and his team has won its first two matches.
Chennai head coach Stephen Fleming said: ‘It’s not easy to change roles, but he’s done it seamlessly.’
He added: ‘We are also using Dhoni in decision-making.’
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2024-04-17 13:27:36