"Hardik Pandya isn't happy.."- Kevin Pietersen's massive allegation after Rohit Sharma's 100

Former cricketer Kevin Pietersen suggests that Mumbai Indians' captain Hardik Pandya might be struggling to maintain a forced smile amidst criticism from fans. Kevin Pietersen acknowledged the challenge of dealing with such situations, drawing from his own experiences.

Hardik Pandya's tenure as Mumbai Indians' captain has been marred by constant booing from fans, particularly during tosses. The star all-rounder replaced longstanding captain Rohit Sharma, who led the team to five IPL titles, which has led to criticism from Mumbai team fans.

Pandya has been encountering both on-field and social media scrutiny from cricket enthusiasts. Notably, at the Wankhede Stadium, fans have expressed their disapproval, prompting interventions from Rohit Sharma during the RR match and Virat Kohli in the RCB encounter.

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Hardik Pandya Is Not Happy - Kevin Pietersen

Speaking to Star Sports, Kevin Pietersen empathized with Hardik Pandya's situation, stating that he is not happy with the criticism. Pietersen emphasized that such scrutiny can profoundly impact an individual.

"I actually think with Hardik Pandya everything away from the game is affecting him so much. He's smiling too much when he does the toss, he's trying to act like he's so happy. He's not happy. I've been there."

"I've been in the firing line and I've been in the firing line proper, he knows I've been in the firing line, you know, I've been in the firing line and I can tell you now, it affects you," Pietersen said on Star Sports.

After commencing his IPL journey with the Mumbai Indians in 2015, the 30-year-old contributed significantly to their three title triumphs. Subsequently, he transferred to the Gujarat Titans in 2022, assuming the captaincy for two seasons before rejoining the Mumbai franchise.

Hardik Pandya Doesn't Want To Be Treated Like This - Kevin Pietersen

Kevin Pietersen believes that Hardik Pandya's performance is impacted by fan criticism, highlighting a recent instance where MS Dhoni hit him for over 20 runs in an over.

"If what's happening to Hardik Pandya, the boos that we've just been hearing now and how happy they are to see the CSK former captain, the lion (MS Dhoni) smacking him all over the park, it hurts you because he has emotion and he's an Indian player. And he doesn't want to be treated like this. So when this is happening, it's affecting him. It's affecting his cricket and something needs to happen," Pietersen concluded.

Hardik Pandya conceded 26 runs during the 20th over as the Chennai Super Kings posted 206 runs. Pandya's performance proved costly for his team as they fell 20 runs short of the target at the Wankhede Stadium on Sunday, April 14. The MI skipper contributed just 2 runs off 6 balls with the bat.

The Mumbai team suffered their fourth loss of the season, placing them in eighth place in the standings. They will face the Punjab Kings (PBKS) in their next match at the Mullanpur Stadium on Thursday, April 18.

Also read: Ishan Kishan opens up on his relationship with Rohit Sharma for the 1st time after being axed from BCCI's central contracts