Hardik Pandya accused as 'arrogant' after denying a handshake to Ruturaj Gaikwad during CSK vs MI clash

In a viral video on social media, MI skipper Hardik Pandya was spotted denying a handshake to Ruturaj Gaikwad, the CSK skipper, after having faced their seventh defeat in the season. Pandya has been tagged as an arrogant man for his denial of a handshake, which is a mark of sportsmanship between players.

The Mumbai Indians and the Chennai Super Kings are the oldest rivals in the history of the IPL and probably the biggest in terms of the number of finals these two teams have played against each other and the number of IPL titles they won in the IPL.

The Chennai Super Kings, despite their poor form in the IPL, have largely dominated the Mumbai Indians over the past four seasons. Having clashed seven times since 2023, CSK have defeated the Mumbai Indians six times, including two in this season.

Viral video shows Hardik Pandya denying a handshake to CSK skipper

A video that went viral on social media witnessed Hardik Pandya, the skipper of the Mumbai Indians team, denying a handshake to the opposition captain, Ruturaj Gaikwad, after the batter finished the chase alongside the youngster Kartik Sharma.

Gaikwad played a vital innings against the Mumbai Indians at Chepauk as his team was chasing a timid target of 160 after having lost the wicket of Sanju Samson, their main man in form. He played a brilliant innings of 67 runs and took his team over the line, registering a comfortable 8-wicket victory.

However, the video on social media saw Gaikwad extending his arm for a handshake and Pandya ignoring it, as Gaikwad too evaded him and reached out to Jasprit Bumrah. Pandya, who did not acknowledge it, has been called arrogant and disrespectful for his conduct.

The reality behind the Hardik Pandya-Ruturaj Gaikwad conundrum revealed

After the match, a completely different narrative was also projected when the full match footage was released and Hardik was seen shaking hands with the CSK skipper while also having a broad smile on his face.

After the video clips from the official broadcasters contradicted the clips that were viral on social media platforms, it was reasoned that the moment might not have been captured prominently in that viral clip and was just misinterpreted by the fans.

However, it clearly seemed like an intentional or doctored video against Hardik Pandya. Often such clips play a very bad role in the character of players as they issue false narratives on players as well as situations on the field.

The Mumbai Indians are at the verge of elimination; will Hardik Pandya retain his captaincy for the remaining matches?

Mumbai Indians have already lost seven of their matches in this season of the competition. Having lost these many games in the competition, the Mumbai Indians are not likely to make a turnaround this season.

The Hardik Pandya-led side now has five more matches left, and looking at the current position of the points table, they clearly do not stand a chance mathematically to make it to the playoffs any further in this season.

To retain his captaincy in this season, Hardik Pandya does not need to do much, as his alternatives in the form of Suryakumar Yadav and Tilak Varma have struggled with their respective performances and are fighting for their own spot in the XI.

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