I was trying to title this as “Hardichotomy” but no one would’ve gotten it (plus there’s hardly anything that supports both sides of the argument). But anyway, here we go..

Hardik Pandya’s captaincy tenure has been underwhelming, to say the least. After a successful two-year stint as captain of the Gujarat Titans, where he led them to an IPL trophy in his first season and runner-up in the second, Pandya returned to the Mumbai Indians. I’ve previously discussed his return and subsequent appointment as MI captain, which I won’t repeat here. However, four months later, most fans’ wishes regarding his captaincy have unfortunately come true, but not in a positive way. Pandya has been disappointing as a captain, a stark contrast to the player we have admired over the years. His second stint with the five-time IPL champions has been plagued by issues.

We’re halfway through the Mumbai Indians season, but pessimism was already prevalent before the tournament began. The new captaincy stirred up a lot of negativity among fans and beyond, prompting Mumbai Indians to engage in extensive PR efforts to improve Hardik’s image. However, things started to unravel during the initial press conference when both Hardik and coach Mark Boucher were questioned about why Rohit Sharma was removed from the captaincy. This incident seemed to confirm the speculation that Hardik had a captaincy clause in his new MI contract upon his return. This situation is just the tip of the iceberg in the whole charade.

Not to mention Rohit’s wife Ritika Sajdeh disproving of Boucher’s comments prior to the tournament when actually giving a reason as to why it happened. It is a larger cocktail than what we’re seeing, but we’re not here to talk about all of that. Speaking more on the cricketing side of things, Hardik’s captaincy as mentioned is less than awe inspiring. There is no semblance of direction or improvement towards the team’s functionalities which I will dissect shortly. But here we are. At the time of writing, MI are 7th on the table, playing 8 games with 3 wins and 5 losses. As a fan, I have no hopes left but to watch this self destruction commence. But why is it even happening, let’s break it down:

Mumbai vs Gujarat; Season Opener

It was the season opener for both teams, and there was a lot of scrutiny and criticism, especially for us. Despite this, I remained optimistic. As I’ve mentioned in my earlier pieces, Hardik’s captaincy record spoke for itself with the success he had achieved with Gujarat. However, returning to the same venture when both sets of fans now dislike him was certainly challenging. But this was also Mumbai’s opening game, and a loss was almost expected to start our season. We did just that, albeit from a position where victory seemed within reach.

Chasing 169 at Gujarat’s home ground to start the season would have provided a much-needed boost to silence some of the hatred towards our captain. Contributions from Rohit and Dewald Brevis helped stabilize a rocky start in our batting innings, only for things to falter as wickets began to fall. Hardik sent Tim David in to accelerate the chase, but David’s struggles against slower balls from Mohit Sharma highlighted his deficiencies and added pressure on MI. When all was said and done, Hardik came in to bat in the last over, hitting a four and a six but getting out on the next ball. It wasn’t the brightest start, but given the circumstances, I wouldn’t have put it past him to turn it around. The criticism towards Tim David’s performance put Hardik under immense pressure, as David’s ability to soak up pressure and help us chase initially was called into question.

The larger criticism was directed at our bowling performance at the start. Hardik took it upon himself to bowl the opening overs, conceding 30 runs in 3 overs, while powerplay specialist Luke Wood only bowled two overs, one of which was in the death overs and he was taken to the cleaners. This mishandling of a player, which has not sat right with me, has led to Luke not getting a game since. As I analyze several other games, I believe we could have made better use of Luke, but unfortunately, that hasn’t been the case. Only Jasprit Bumrah was the saving grace, as his performance helped us restrict them to 168. This seems to be the story of the season so far.

Mumbai vs Hyderabad; RECORDS!

This is where we witnessed signs of Hardik completely losing control. Sunrisers Hyderabad delivered a batting masterclass, breaking the record for the highest-ever IPL team score by posting 277 runs in their innings (a record they themselves would later break). Being on the receiving end of such a thrashing was embarrassing, and letting Hardik start the bowling alongside an unproven 17-year-old South African named Kwena Maphaka added insult to injury.

While Hardik did manage to take the wicket of Mayank Agarwal in the Powerplay, starting with Jasprit Bumrah might have mitigated the damage. However, as they say, “do not cry over spilled milk.” The onslaught from Travis Head, Abhishek Sharma (both setting their own records for the fastest 50 for their team), and later Heinrich Klaasen severely dented our bowling confidence for subsequent games. Hardik’s bowling decisions have also faced significant criticism, particularly when entrusting THE last over of the innings to another unproven SPINNER named Shams Mulani. This move officially made me lose faith in Hardik’s captaincy, as it seemed like a complete mockery of his responsibilities.

Despite facing such a mammoth total, we fought back with immense pride. A blistering start from Rohit Sharma and Ishan Kishan, later capitalized by Naman Dhir and Tilak Verma, helped us gain momentum in what could have been the biggest run chase. At the halfway mark, MI were 141/2, and maintaining the same momentum for another 130 runs could have secured us the win.

However, Hardik Pandya’s performance turned the tide against us. He scored 24 runs off 20 balls when we needed runs quickly, slowing down our progress. This resulted in us requiring 93 runs off the last 5 overs, a challenging task even with Tim David scoring 42 off 22 in what had become a ‘lost-cause’ situation. Despite this defeat, I was less disappointed as we showed enough courage to bounce back from such adversity. Yet, here we are, with our captain disappointing us again.

Mumbai vs Rajasthan; Home Defeat

We witnessed a Trent Boult masterclass unfold before our eyes. His initial spell decimated Mumbai Indians even before they could shift into second gear, leaving us at 20/4 within the first three overs. Some respite came from Tilak and Hardik, who seemed to be finally finding his form, and it felt like we were salvaging the situation. However, once Hardik got out, things took a turn for the worse. The bigger issue was the decision to “save Tim David from spinners” and sending Piyush Chawla to face them instead. This decision was shameful, and when Tim David eventually came on to bat, he could only manage a paltry 17 off 24 balls, restricting us to a total of 125.

Despite the challenges, there were some saving graces in Jasprit Bumrah’s performance and the return of Akash Madhwal, who hadn’t played the first two games but unfortunately hasn’t been the same since. Rajasthan Royals comfortably finished the chase with 4.3 overs to spare, with the finishing touches coming from the ‘reborn’ Riyan Parag. However, what was striking was Hardik’s demeanor post-match. He was all smiles when talking to the press, as if nothing had happened. This behavior, which has continued throughout the season, is inexcusable for a captain who has lost all three matches.

Mumbai vs Delhi & RCB; BOOMRAH!

In the subsequent games, Mumbai Indians finally hit their stride. In a day game against Delhi Capitals, Mumbai posted a formidable total of 234/5 batting first, with the entire batting unit performing admirably. Rohit Sharma’s 49, Ishan Kishan’s 42, Tim David’s 45, and Romario Shepherd’s explosive 39 off 10 balls laid a solid foundation. However, Hardik Pandya’s contribution was underwhelming, scoring 39 off 33 balls. While his innings can be somewhat excused given the rapid fall of wickets after Rohit’s dismissal, it did hinder our potential to reach 250-260, especially on a pitch favorable to batsmen. The major concern in this match was Hardik’s handling of the bowling attack. He persisted with Akash Madhwal, who struggled against Prithvi Shaw and Tristan Stubbs. Mohammed Nabi, who came into the side, conceded 17 runs off 2 overs, which can be forgiven, but giving him more overs might have helped defend the total more effectively. Despite Delhi Capitals coming close to our total by scoring 205, Jasprit Bumrah once again proved to be the savior, conceding only 22 runs and taking 2 wickets in such a high-scoring match. This victory marked what felt like the beginning of our season’s turnaround, boosting morale and providing much-needed momentum.

In the following game vs RCB, the theme continued but we looked significantly better! Conceding 196 but also Bumrah’s 5/21 in 4 overs proved effective. Mumbai chased the total with another 5 overs to spare which felt rewarding seeing the team struggle so much initially to finally find their rhythm. Ishan’s 69, Rohit’s 38 and a returning Suryakumar Yadav’s 52 off 19 balls helped us finish the game quickly, not to mention Hardik’s own 21 off 6 added much more positive vibes to our campaign. But sadly…..

Mumbai vs Chennai, Punjab & Rajasthan; NOSEDIVE!

And here we are. The subsequent matches, including the loss to Chennai, the win against Punjab (which felt like a loss in the grand scheme of things), and the most recent loss to Rajasthan, have taken the morale of the team on a complete nosedive. In the match against Chennai, we conceded 206 runs in 20 overs, largely due to the onslaught by Shivam Dube and the last over bashing by ‘Thala’ Dhoni (no prizes for guessing who was bowling that last over). Mumbai managed to fight back, thanks to Rohit Sharma’s first century in 12 years, but Hardik’s 2 off 6 slowed things down and ultimately cost us the game. Losing by 20 runs, which were Dhoni’s own, proved to be the key difference maker. It seems that our captain is unfit to lead this team, especially proven with him not even showing the courage to big up his own team and praising the opposition (reminiscent of his interview last year when he said MI buys stars and CSK makes them; disproving his own rise).

The subsequent game against Punjab Kings somewhat alleviated the pain from the previous match, with scores from Suryakumar Yadav and Rohit Sharma helping us reach 192 runs (which still felt short of what we could have achieved, possibly going past 220). We got off to a great start in bowling, reducing Punjab to 14/4 in 3 overs with 2 wickets each from Gerald Coetzee (who has been a bit inconsistent) and Jasprit Bumrah. However, despite this strong start, we ended up winning the match by ONLY 9 runs, largely due to Ashutosh Sharma’s efforts bringing Punjab Kings close to the target. Also proving Hardik’s inefficiency was him refusing to bowl Nabi once again when he (again) could’ve helped us defend the score properly, with him eventually being instrumental with catching and running out on the last three wickets. His Instagram proved his feelings (also ours).

The recent defeat to Rajasthan has left me enraged and questioning the purpose of defending and watching this team. Mumbai Indians were 15/3 in the first three overs, reminiscent of an earlier game against them. However, it took a herculean effort from Nehal Wadhera (who was BENCHED for the first 7 games despite being one of our key players last season) and Tilak Varma to salvage the situation, with both staging a 99-run partnership to get us near a desirable total. Yet again, Hardik Pandya poured water over someone else’s hard work, followed by Tim David (a recurring theme this season). Our bowling was toothless as well, allowing an out-of-form (no disrespect intended) Yashasvi Jaiswal to score a century. Hardik even bowled the first over when Bumrah could have, and finally, throwing Nuwan Thushara into the fire added to the frustration.

My Thoughts

It’s been a rollercoaster of emotions analyzing Hardik’s performance as captain. His attitude, body language, decision-making, and everything else in between haven’t been up to par, and it’s disheartening. Despite my support, he hasn’t given me any reasons to continue backing him. He’s been at the center of most of our problems this season, showing no signs of improvement, which is frustrating. Initially, I was cautiously optimistic about his captaincy, hoping for good results, but nothing has materialized. It feels like he’s proving his haters right, especially when the negativity is at an all-time high. At this point, it’s hard to find the motivation to keep watching and supporting the team.

It’s evident that MI’s management and owners have meddled unnecessarily, disrupting the team’s balance. Despite a weaker bowling attack, the team seemed settled last year and making the playoffs was a significant achievement. The decision to trade for Hardik single-handedly affected the fortunes of three teams – MI, Gujarat, and RCB. MI suffered due to the season they’ve had, Gujarat lost a proven captain, and RCB saw our ex-player Cameron Green struggle to perform and RCB languishing at rock bottom. Pretty sad to know all things involved.

Hardik’s performances, as he tries to secure a spot in India’s World T20 squad, have been nothing short of embarrassing. Based on merit alone, he should be nowhere near the squad and should rather be sent to the shadow realm. It’s a total self-destruction and something that no one would have foreseen after his decent performance in the 50-over World Cup last October.

But coming back to Mumbai Indians, at this point the best thing they can do is to relieve Hardik off his captaincy duties, give it to Bumrah instead to plan the team’s future around given mega auctions are next year, sack Mark Boucher and see out the season with Pollard as the interim head coach (for similar reasons), let Hardik take a mental health break of his own and come back fresh for his own long term benefit.

Conclusion

I’d like to conclude by humbly requesting Hardik Pandya to drop the “main character syndrome” for his own benefit and focus on improving his game. As a fan, I understand that my words may not carry much weight, but I hope he can improve his attitude and gameplay for the prosperity of his team. This is not a piece of hate towards Hardik; I still admire him for his achievements for both Mumbai Indians and the Indian Cricket team. However, he has added fuel to his already tarnished reputation, and his recent actions have not helped improve his image, regardless of any PR efforts. His 2019 Koffee With Karan interview showed signs of how fame can affect someone, but he has also shown resilience in bouncing back and striving for self-improvement, which I hope to see again. Only time will tell.