Steve Smith, the seasoned Australian batsman, suggests that Mumbai Indians (MI) supporters have been overly critical of Hardik Pandya following the captaincy controversy. He believes it’s now crucial for fans to support their leader and the team as they strive to improve their performance in the IPL 2024. Having lost their first three matches, Mumbai Indians (MI) are currently at the bottom of the IPL 2024 points table. Hardik Pandya, who faced criticism in Ahmedabad and Hyderabad, experienced similar treatment upon his return to the Wankhede Stadium during the match against the Rajasthan Royals.
He’s a wonderful player. He had a lot of success at Gujarat- Steve Smith on Hardik Pandya
In an interaction with Star Sports, Steve Smith emphasized the importance of Mumbai Indians (MI) fans letting go of their anger regarding the captaincy transition from Rohit Sharma to Hardik Pandya. He likely highlighted the need for fans to support the team’s current leader and focus on moving forward positively.
I’d love to see them supporting Hardik. Obviously, there are a lot of huge Rohit fans out there. A lot of people are a bit annoyed that he’s not the captain of the side. But, everyone needs to let go of that and support Hardik.
“He’s a wonderful player. He had a lot of success at Gujarat (Titans). He’s back (as) captain of the side at Mumbai now. The senior players need to help him out.”
Some fans are disappointed with Hardik Pandya’s comments from last year, where he suggested that Mumbai Indians (MI) had a culture of buying star players. Others believe that the team’s owners could have managed the captaincy transition more smoothly by being more transparent about their decision-making process.
Steve Smith Addresses Concerns About MI’s Response to Slow IPL 2024 Start
Despite not securing a victory in this season’s IPL, Mumbai Indians have a history of starting slowly, according to Steve Smith. He expressed confidence that the five-time champions understand what is required to reverse their fortunes and reenter the race for the playoffs. He said,
One thing about the Mumbai Indians is (that) they’re notoriously bad starters in the tournament. They’ve done it on numerous occasions. I don’t think they’d be too worried just yet. But, they will have to turn things around really quickly. It doesn’t look good, 0-3 at the bottom of the table.”
MI received a significant boost with the return of Suryakumar Yadav to the team in Mumbai. Their next match is against the Delhi Capitals at the Wankhede Stadium on Sunday, April 7.
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