Mumbai Indians, five-time IPL (Indian Premier League) champions, are experiencing a forgettable season in 2024. Having played six games, the team has only managed two victories and four defeats. The addition of top all-arounder Hardik Pandya from the Gujarat Titans to the team, along with Rohit Sharma’s replacement as captain, is one of the key changes for the upcoming campaign.
The team suffered their fourth loss of the year as they played the reigning champion Chennai Super Kings at Mumbai’s Wankhede Stadium. Following the all-rounder’s poor showing with the bat and the ball, many came up to place the blame on captain Hardik Pandya.
Kieron Pollard, the batting coach for the Mumbai Indians, had a different take on the matter. The former Windies all-rounder stated that Pandya is doing his best to lead his team to victory and that he is tired of the relentless criticism of his performance.
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“After all, cricket is a team sport, so I’m tired of us trying to single people out. This is a person who, in less than six weeks, will represent the nation, and everyone will support him and wish him luck. So, it’s time to quit nitpicking and try to help one of the best all-round players India has ever produced reach his full potential. “He has an X-factor about him and can bat, bowl, and field,” Pollard was cited by ESPNcricinfo.
Kieron Pollard also discussed Pandya’s efforts to improve as a player and discussed how maturity and experience in the game come with accepting responsibility for one’s actions.
“As an individual, you must change. Youth is the time of youthful energy. You go out and act in a specific way. As you age, responsibilities and accountability become more apparent. It appears to me that the man is changing. Individually, we have certain expectations, but occasionally the game does not fulfill them, and as we have all discovered, players will make mistakes along the way,” he continued.
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