MI vs SRH: "Hardik Pandya is drained..looks flat.."- Aaron Finch's jaw-dropping allegations
Updated - 04 May 2024, 02:15 PM
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Former Australia captain Aaron Finch has lamented the situation of all-rounder Hardik Pandya after his Mumbai Indians officially exited from IPL 2024 last night.
The Mumbai Indians lost to a Kolkata Knight Riders team that hadn't won a single match at the Wankhede Stadium in 12 years. However, the law of average came into effect yesterday as Hardik Pandya's side was beaten by a margin of 24 runs.
It was Mumbai's 8th loss of the season and while they have no chance of reaching the play-offs, they can still finish the season on a high by winning their last 3 matches.
Aaron Finch observes that Hardik Pandya is completely drained
It has been a very tough season for the new Mumbai Indians captain Hardik Pandya. Before the season had begun, he was being trolled by the fans.
When IPL 2024 began, he was still being slammed by MI, GT, and Rohit Sharma fans. And as the season nears towards an end, Pandya is still being bashed.
The scenario for Hardik Pandya would have been different had the Mumbai Indians been in the top 4 of the table. But since they are not, Pandya has to deal with the criticism, online abuse and so much more from the fans.
The worst part about it is that his players, especially the juniors, are not giving him enough respect. That's much more heartbreaking to see as a pure cricket fan.
Former Aussie captain Aaron Finch feels the same way for Hardik Pandya. The 2021 T20 World Cup winner, from his observation, has claimed that Pandya is looking drained from all the pressure that he is under.
While speaking to Star Sports, Finch admitted that being in Hardik's situation is very tough as he has himself been there once in his career when nothing seems to work.
“He looks flat at the moment, he looks drained. He looks like someone who is feeling the pressure. I feel for him as I know what it feels like to be in that situation. Everything that you try doesn’t seem to work and when the team is not performing well, that’s a really difficult place." - Aaron Finch said via Star Sports.
Finch explains how things could have been different for Hardik
Aaron Finch went on to further claim that Hardik Pandya wouldn't have found himself in this situation if the Mumbai Indians were winning their matches. In such a scenario, the all-rounder would have been at ease, knowing that the team was performing well regardless of the slump in his form.
Finch concluded by saying that the Indian Premier League is a very cruel competition, especially when a team is in a bad situation.
"It’s one thing when you are not performing, but your team is winning. That’s something you take pride in as a captain. But you wear all the responsibilities of your own performance and also of the team and it’s an incredibly hard place to be in, particularly in this competition." - Finch concluded.
MI to host SRH up next
Meanwhile, the Mumbai Indians will welcome the Sunrisers Hyderabad in their next home game at the Wankhede stadium on May 6th. In their previous meeting, Hyderabad had posted 277 on the board in their first innings, and with the reverse fixture set to take place in Wankhede, we might as well expect fireworks again.
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