MI has dropped both of its opening games, one against SunRisers Hyderabad (SRH) and the other against GT.
IPL skipper Hardik Pandya of the Mumbai Indians (MI) has not been treated well by fans this season. In the team’s first two games as captain of MI in the 2024 Indian Premier League, Hardik has faced jeers from the audience. When the 30-year-old returned to the Narendra Modi Stadium in Ahmedabad, the Gujarat Titans supporters booed him during the coin flip. So far, MI has dropped both of its games: the first against GT and the second against SunRisers Hyderabad (SRH).
In case you missed it, supporters are upset that Hardik, who was traded by GT in advance of the IPL 2024 player auction, took Rohit’s place as MI’s captain.
Reports have indicated that there may be crowd disturbances at the Wankhede Stadium when MI plays the Rajasthan Royals on Monday night in their first home game of the season.
Additionally, there have been numerous rumors circulating that the Mumbai Cricket Association (MCA) is preparing to take action against supporters who harass Hardik.
The BCCI’s standards on crowd behavior will be adhered to, MCA has refuted this.
“This particular game has no instructions provided. A statement from the MCA stated, “Over the years, the BCCI has issued set guidelines on spectator behavior, which is the process that is followed,” as reported by News 18.
Ravinchandran Ashwin stepped out in strong support of the MI skipper amid Hardik’s problems.
The negative treatment of Pandya by fans and on social media began after the all-rounder took over as MI captain ahead of the 2024 IPL, and Ashwin directly criticized the environment of “fan wars” and “cinema culture” for this.
“This is not how fan conflicts should ever end. Recall that these athletes are representatives of our nation. What therefore justifies jeering a cricket player? “I’m not understanding. In response to a question from a fan on his YouTube channel, Ashwin stated, “If you don’t like a player and boo a player, why should a team come out to issue a clarification.”
Ashwin also cited instances from the past in which legendary players, putting aside their egos, included Rahul Dravid, Anil Kumble, Sachin Tendulkar, and Sourav Ganguly while they were playing for MS Dhoni, a much younger player at the time.
“Both Sachin Tendulkar and Sourav Ganguly were coaches to each other. Both of these have competed while being captained by Rahul Dravid. All three of these players have experience playing under Dhoni and under Anil Kumble.
“These players were cricket jambhavans (veterans) when they played for Dhoni. Virat (Kohli) was also Vihoni’s coach,” he remarked.
