The going has been tough for Mumbai Indians on and off the field since Hardik Pandya replaced Rohit Sharma as captain in IPL 2024.
Two losses in two matches doesn’t tell the whole story. There has been speculation about a lot of unrest within the team but the management has maintained a stoic silence.
Hardik was booed by the Ahmedabad crowd last Sunday during Mumbai’s match against Gujarat Titans, the franchise he led for the last two years. It was so obvious that it became impossible for the broadcasters to ignore the anti-Pandya chants too.
Kevin Pietersen wondered when an Indian player was last booed at his home ground. Ian Bishop asked what Hardik needed to do to win them over. Brian Lara had a simple solution: “Play for India here.”
It was in Ahmedabad that Hardik had led the Titans to the title in their inaugural year and a runners-up finish the following year but the crowd showed scant regard for such achievements. They simply voiced their dislike for Hardik’s switch.
Even in Mumbai, the home franchise faithful believe that Rohit has been unfairly removed following an 11-year stint at the top and Hardik had no business being promoted to the leadership role after making a return to the franchise.
Hardik’s every move is now being scrutinised on social media and he has had to face the fans’ wrath incessantly. A video has emerged since Wednesday, showing the Mumbai skipper purportedly pushing bowling coach Lasith Malinga after their 31-run loss to Sunrisers.
He has also been slammed for his habitual disrespect for seniors, while also linking it to the perceived ill-treatment meted out to Rohit by the franchise. Malinga can be seen moving towards Hardik to hug him in the video, but the skipper seemed to ignore him and was more eager to shake hands with the Sunrisers Hyderabad players.
Rohit fielding on the boundary ropes in Ahmedabad has also led to anger.
Former Australia captain Steve Smith’s suggestion to Hardik is to simply “block out” the boos and the abuse he has been coping with. Smith had faced similar heckling a few years ago for his role in the 2018 Newlands ball-tampering scandal.
“I’d try and just say, to block it out, it’s all irrelevant,” Smith said on ESPNcricinfo’s TimeOut show. “No one outside knows what you are going through. No one (from outside) is in that change room.”
Smith knows it’s pretty unusual for Hardik too. “Personally, for me, it doesn’t bother me. I don’t care. I don’t pay any attention,” Smith said. “You know it’s all white noise, but certainly players do hear things and everyone’s entitled to their own emotions and how they respond to those.
“So is it affecting him? Maybe. It’s possible. He probably hasn’t experienced that before, in any walk of life. So it’s natural, I suppose, and particularly being a star Indian player... it’s certainly something he wouldn’t have experienced.”
