Credit: X
Irfan Pathan was quick to criticise Hardik Pandya, the captain of Mumbai Indians, for not being able to resurrect their failing innings against Rajasthan Royals in the 14th match of the IPL 2024. At the Wankhede Stadium, Rajasthan Royals restricted Mumbai Indians to just 125/9 total, putting themselves in the box seat to secure a win.
After being put into batting first, Mumbai Indians had a terrible start, losing the wickets of Rohit Sharma and Naman Dhir on back-to-back deliveries to Trent Boult. The left-arm fast bowler also picked up the wicket of the impact substitute Dewald Brevis without troubling the scorers, which led to Hardik Pandya walking out to the Wankhede Stadium, getting serenaded with a chorus of boos from the home fans.
Despite the hostile environment for Hardik Pandya, in the wake of replacing Rohit Sharma as MI captain, he went about his business of batting astutely. After defending a few deliveries early in the innings, he started hitting boundaries in a partnership with Tilak Varma for the fifth wicket, trying to steady the ship for his team.
But, against the run of play, Hardik Pandya tried to go downtown against Yuzvendra Chahal, only to find the safe hands of Rovman Powell at long-on. His enterprising innings ended at 34 off 21 balls, including six fours, but it was far from enough for the Mumbai Indians’ cause.
The dismissal of Hardik Pandya led to Irfan Pathan posting on his official X account, “Ppl who understand the game well know this. If you are set, you got to see the team thru.” The former Indian cricketer has been very critical of the captaincy tactics and the batting exploits of Hardik Pandya during the early stages of the IPL 2024, and his post today is another such example.
Hardik Pandya will be leading out Mumbai Indians intending to defend the paltry score of 125 runs against a highly formidable Rajasthan Royals batting lineup in front of their home fans.
