NEW DELHI: Mumbai Indians faced a daunting challenge in the IPL 2024 season. With eight defeats in 11 matches, their prospects for reaching the playoffs seemed bleak. The team’s lackluster performance sparked intense criticism from both fans and pundits.
Captain Hardik Pandya bore the brunt of the backlash, with doubts surfacing about his leadership abilities and tactical decisions on the field. Even the support staff didn’t escape scrutiny.
In a recent discussion with Cricbuzz, former India opener Virender Sehwag highlighted that during Pandya’s captaincy at Gujarat Titans, he consistently batted at number four. Sehwag expressed astonishment at seeing seasoned players like Pandya and Tim David relegated to batting positions as low as seven and eight.
Sehwag urged team owners to probe deeply into the rationale behind such significant changes in the batting order, emphasizing the importance of transparency and accountability in decision-making processes that impact the team’s performance and strategy.
“Hardik Pandya regularly batted at number four when he led GT. What’s the reason for the change here? It’s perplexing to see experienced players pushed down the order. Management must take decisive action or demand explanations from players. The captain, batting coach, bowling coach, and support staff share responsibility here. Owners need to ask tough questions,” Sehwag asserted.
“KKR protected Andre Russell; he faced only two balls. Mumbai Indians protected Hardik Pandya and Tim David. What did they achieve? They all got out with many deliveries left. Perhaps they could have come in earlier or finished the game sooner. I can’t fathom Hardik Pandya batting at seven and Tim David at eight. Are they so inept that they’d fail if they came in earlier?” he questioned further.
