On Thursday, an interesting report said that the Mumbai Indians camp may not be a happy place because of Hardik Pandya's captaincy. The report said senior members of MI questioned the performance of the five-time champions under new skipper Hardik Pandya. MI has become the first team to be officially eliminated from the IPL 2024 playoff race. It's a far cry from the days when MI dominated the IPL. The report added that key MI players felt there was a “lack of buzz” in the dressing room due to Hardik Pandya's captaincy.
AB De Villiers went into details about how MI's campaign went in IPL 2024, according to Indian Express.
“MI has been very disappointing. I have backed them from the start to qualify for the knockout stages, but that won't happen. What went wrong? Last four seasons: 5th in 2021, 10th in 2022, 4th in 2023 and 9th. Last The match was good, but it was too little too late. So Rohit Sharma says, 'I have played under many captains. It is nothing new. You do what you have to do and I have been doing that for the past month. “You can read a little bit about that if you want,” he said on his YouTube channel.
“Hardik Pandya's captaincy style is quite bravado. It's ego-driven in a way, with his chest out. I don't think the way he walks on the field is always really true to the person he really is, but he has decided that is his way of captaincy. Almost like MS. Cool, calm, collective, always smiling, with his chest on the ground. But when you play with a lot of experienced players, guys who have been playing for centuries, they don't believe in that It worked at GT, where it was a younger team. Sometimes inexperienced players like to follow that kind of leadership.”
De Villiers suggested that with tough players like Rohit Sharma and Jasprit Bumrah in the squad, that might not have been the best strategy.
“I think of Graeme Smith. He was there for the team. All I had to do as a youngster was follow. Now there's a Rohit, there's a Bumrah. They say, 'All we need is that you are calm.' Give us some information on how to win games. We don't need bravado. I'm not going to comment on Hardik. I believe that sometimes as a batsman you have to fake it to make it you are most afraid or feel the heat of battle, I cannot be the timid, soft-spoken AB that I am. To counter that, you have to stick out your chest and make eye contact with the opposition. Then you lose lick your wounds. But if you cross the hurdle, it increases your self-confidence,” said De Villiers.
“Hardik has understood that. But it takes a special senior player to believe in that. You know what? Fake it, and we will follow. Don't think that has clicked for MI this season. Remember, I'm just guessing. That doesn't mean it's a fact.”
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