"Hardik Pandya shouldn't have said..." - Former Indian cricketer on Mumbai Indians' captain
Updated - 18 May 2024, 11:46 AM
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Manoj Tiwary opened up about the Mumbai Indians' performance under Hardik Pandya's captaincy in the Indian Premier League (IPL) 2024. Manoj Tiwary stated that Mumbai's performance was affected by the change in captaincy before the season began.
The Hardik Pandya-led team suffered an 18-run loss to the Lucknow Super Giants (LSG) at the Wankhede Stadium on Friday, May 17. The Mumbai-based team finished at the bottom of the table with eight points. Notably, they also faced a similar fate in the 2022 season.
Hardik Pandya faced criticism from the fans at the beginning of the tournament. Pandya was booed by fans across venues in the first matches, which might negatively impact the team's performance. The MI team managed to secure only four wins out of 14 matches.
Couldn't Recover From The Initial Blows - Manoj Tiwary
Speaking on Cricbuzz, Manoj Tiwary stated that the Mumbai Indians never recovered from the change in captaincy. Tiwary stated that the timing and manner of the captaincy change didn't resonate well with fans.
"The team couldn't recover from the initial blows. The changes that were made weren't on a positive note. The captain was changed and before the IPL the new captain shouldn't have said 'Rishtey mein toh hum tumhaare captain hote hain… naam hai Pandya', that too didn't sit well with fans. The timing of it was wrong. The pulse of it wasn't captured by fans due to which the support he was supposed to get, Hardik didn't," Tiwary said on Cricbuzz.
Hardik Pandya scored 216 runs in 14 matches at a disappointing average of 18.00 and a strike rate of 143.05. The batter did not score a half-century this season. He took 11 wickets at an expensive economy rate of 10.75, with the best bowling figures of 3/31.
The Support Of Fans Is Extremely Important - Manoj Tiwary
Manoj Tiwary highlighted the importance of fan support for the Mumbai Indians, noting that players play for them. The former Indian cricketer stated that Hardik Pandya appeared exhausted and under pressure due to the situation.
"And the support of fans is extremely important for fans because the atmosphere here is such. Players themselves acknowledge that we play for the fans in interviews. So you have to take the fans' perspective into it as well. Cricketing aspects, and tactics will always change but had MI convinced the fans and taken them along on their new captain, it wouldn't have made much of an impact. Hardik Pandya looks exhausted, under pressure," Tiwary added.
Lucknow posted a formidable total of 214-6 after being asked to bat first. Captain KL Rahul scored 55 runs off 41 balls. Nicholas Pooran played an explosive knock of 75 runs off 29 deliveries, featuring five fours and eight sixes at a strike rate of 258.62.
Chasing 215 runs for a victory, Rohit Sharma scored 68 runs off 38 balls, while Naman Dhir added 62 off 28, featuring four fours and five sixes. Despite their efforts, the Mumbai Indians finished at 196-6 in their 20 overs. Hardik scored 16 runs off 13 balls in the match.
