Former India fast bowler Irfan Pathan criticised Hardik Pandya’s captaincy on his leadership debut for Mumbai Indians after the 5-time champions imploded in their chase and lost to Gujarat Titans in their IPL 2024 opener. Mumbai Indians needed just 39 runs from their last 4 overs with 6 wickets in hand, but they suffered a massive collapse and fell short of a 169-run target by 6 runs.
The old jinx did not change under new captain Hardik Pandya as Mumbai Indians lost their opening match of an IPL season for the 12th time on a row. Mumbai Indians lost their last 5 wickets for just 32 runs and Hardik Pandya’s valiant effort with the bat in the final over was not enough for his team on the big evening at the Narendra Modi Stadium in Ahmedabad on Sunday, March 24.
IPL 2024, GT vs MI Scorecard
When only 43 runs were needed in the last 5 overs, Mumbai Indians decided to send Tim David ahead of Hardik Pandya, a move that Irfan Pathan has heavily criticised. The former fast bowler questioned if Hardik was not very keen on facing Afghanistan star Rashid Khan in the end overs, considering his absence from high-level competitive cricket for more close to 5 months.
Tim David struggled to get going under pressure and his inability to get going in the 16th over against Rashid Khan turned the tide in Gujarat Titans’ favour. Rashid gave away only 4 runs as he put pressure on the Mumbai batting unit. Mohit Sharma bowled 2 tight overs to bring down the equation to 19 runs in the final over.
Hardik Pandya, who walked out at No. 7, hit a six and a boundary to start the final over, but he was caught in Umesh Yadav’s bowling as Mumbai fell short of 6 runs.
WAS HARDIK SCARED OF RASHID?
“Hardik Pandya made big mistakes in the match. In the powerplay, he bowled 2 overs himself, that was a big mistake. He brought Jasprit Bumrah into the attack a bit late,” Irfan Pathan said, highlighting the 20 runs that Hardik gave in his first two overs without making an impact after winning the toss and opting to bowl.
“And secondly, when they were chasing, they sent Tim David higher up the order. He sent Tim David when Rashid Khan had an over left.
“I felt Hardik Pandya maybe didn’t want to face Rashid Khan after having not played cricket for a long time. This could be the case. I won’t agree with the fact that there was an experienced Indian batter sitting in the dressing room and sent an overseas player under pressure against Rashid.
“They missed a trick there,” Irfan added.
Mumbai Indians were cruising toward the 169-run target after a good start from Rohit Sharma and Dewald Brevis as the two batters added 77 runs for the 3rd wicket after an impressive cameo from Naman Dhir. However, the mighty Mumbai batting unit was not able to thrive under pressure.
On the other hand, Shubman Gill, leading Gujarrat Titans for the first time since Hardik was traded from the side to Mumbai, shone under pressure, keeping his calm and making the right bowling calls. Gujarat were rewarded for their team effort as they walked away with 2 points in their big opener at home.
Gujarat TItans next face Chenna Super Kings in Chennai on Tuesday while Mumbai Indians will travel to Hyderabad to face the SunRisers on Wednesday, March 27.
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