DTVHINDI
Hardik Pandya’s performance in IPL 2024, both as a captain and a player, was quite ordinary. Before the start of the season, Mumbai franchise replaced Rohit Sharma and made Hardik Pandya the captain of the team. But the fans including some players of the team did not like his decision at all. After which Hardik Pandya has been criticized a lot throughout the season. Be it fans or cricket experts, everyone has trolled Hardik for his poor captaincy.
Meanwhile, former Team India cricketer and currently KKR mentor Gautam Gambhir has now come to the defense of Hardik Pandya. He has also fiercely targeted Hardik’s critics. Gautam Gambhir expressed confidence in Hardik Pandya’s abilities and backed him to make a significant impact in the 2024 T20 World Cup.
During a conversation with Sportskeeda, Gautam Gambhir said, “T20 is a format where if you score 25 runs in 10 balls or take two wickets in a row, everything comes back. Also, there will be no captaincy pressure on Hardik Pandya in the T20 World Cup. Therefore, there he will play with complete freedom. It is very easy to sit in an AC room and say that he has not performed well.”
Gambhir also believes that even if Hardik had scored 500 runs in IPL 2024, he would have faced criticism. They said that, “There are many factors that go into a player’s good performance. There is pressure of captaincy and team performance. Even if he had scored 500 runs, he would have been criticized for MI’s position in the points table.
Hardik Pandya-led Mumbai was the first team to be eliminated from the race for the IPL 2024 playoffs. Hardik has also had to face criticism for his poor form. The star all-rounder has scored only 200 runs in 12 innings and has taken 11 wickets in the same innings at an economy rate of 10.58.
