Hardik Pandya is a very cool and calm leader - Chris Gayle praises newly-appointed MI skipper ahead of IPL 2024

Hardik Pandya will be leading the Mumbai Indians in the upcoming IPL 2024 and former West Indies cricketer Chris Gayle has shown faith in the all-rounder as he is set to lead one of the most successful franchises of the IPL. He was traded in from Gujarat Titans where he led the side to their maiden IPL title in their first season in 2022 and also reached the finals in 2023 losing to Chennai Super Kings in the finals.

Chris Gayle in an interview with the official broadcasters of the IPL Star Sports said that Hardik Pandya has been successful in the IPL as he won the title in his very first season as a captain of the side. Gayle lauded his captaincy style and personality and said that he is very cool and calm and wants to take responsibility for the team leading from the front.

“Hardik has been successful in the IPL, the first time he captained in the IPL, he lifted the trophy so he is definitely one for the future. I like his captaincy style as well and I like his personality. He is very flamboyant and he is not the guy you know when something goes wrong in the field you’re gonna see antics like screaming at others. He is very cool, he is very calm as well and sometimes he has a bit of a smile on his face which is good and that can send the right impression to a player if they do something bad in the field,” said Chris Gayle

“With his charisma, how he captains the team is good and he is kind of laid back as well so that’s good but I’m sure when he gets more into it he’ll know how to go about his players. He wants to be that player who wants to stand out not as a captain but as a player, he wants to take that responsibility which is very good. With Hardik, he wants to lead the team from the front,” he added.

Watch- Chris Gayle praising Hardik Pandya’s captaincy in the IPL

It's always great when you get praised by one of the legends of the game! 👏

📹 | See @henrygayle on @mipaltan' new skipper, @hardikpandya7-his traits, leadership, and future with #TeamIndia! 🤌

Will he lead #MI to their 6️⃣th #IPL trophy in #IPLonStar? #Cricket #TATAIPL2024 pic.twitter.com/0ZoNtLcjs3

— Star Sports (@StarSportsIndia) February 26, 2024

The announcement made by Mumbai Indians announcing Hardik Pandya as their new skipper for the IPL 2024 was not welcomed by the fans as they were agitated to see Rohit Sharma being removed as the skipper. Rohit Sharma is the most successful captain in the IPL and has won five IPL titles with Mumbai Indians which is a huge feat. Before Rohit Sharma, Mumbai Indians did not have a single IPL trophy and were struggling in the league for the first six seasons.

Hardik Pandya started his IPL journey under Rohit’s captaincy in 2015 and has won five IPL trophies; four as a player and one as a captain. He is also the future prospect for leading the national side as he was the captain in the absence of Rohit Sharma in the shortest format. Hardik Pandya led the Indian side in T20Is after Rohit Sharma was asked to take a break from the shortest format after the ICC t20 World Cup 2022.

Hardik Pandya is an able leader but Mumbai Indians should have communicated with Rohit Sharma properly before making such a huge decision according to the fans. The Mumbai-based franchise traded Hardik Pandya for 15 crores from Gujarat Titans ahead of the IPL auctions and then announced him as the captain of the franchise.