Hardik Pandya will only get motivated with hostile crowd behaviour, says teammate

Hostility from the crowd will only further inspire Mumbai Indians captain Hardik Pandya to overcome a lean patch and bounce back with a series of strong performances, teammate Shreyas Gopal said on Wednesday.

All-rounder Pandya has been booed by fans both at the Wankhede Stadium, MI’s home ground, as well as in away matches, including Gujarat Titans’ base of the Narendra Modi Stadium in Ahmedabad. Pandya had replaced Rohit Sharma as Mumbai Indians captain following his blockbuster trade from GT, whom he led to back-to-back finals including the title on debut in 2022.

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However, the decision to replace Rohit, who led MI to five IPL titles, hasn’t gone down too well among fans, who have not only made their displeasure known at the venues but have also targeted the all-rounder online, subjecting to incessant trolling.

Recalling his friendship with Pandya, Gopal said the MI skipper is mentally very strong to get unnerved by the behaviour of the crowd.

“I have known Hardik for a decade, and nothing much has changed. He is a really tough guy, and something like this is only going to motivate him,” said Gopal during a press conference ahead of the clash against Punjab Kings.

“The way he has taken it so far is very inspiring for a lot of us. Although it’s not easy to take it daily, he is strong and kudos to him.

“He has not let it affect him personally. But, it will probably be there in his head.”

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Under Pandya’s leadership, MI have won just two of their six games so far and are placed eighth in the 10-team table.

Gopal, however, said the dressing room atmosphere remains positive and the team will bounce back.

“The team atmosphere is great. Unfortunately, we couldn’t cross the line on the winning side in the last match, but every team goes through ups and downs. When you start hitting a purple patch, you start clicking as a team,” he said.

“We did see a couple of good games when we came together as a group. We must put all aspects (batting, bowling and fielding) together in one match. We have been playing some really good cricket.

“History says that (we get off to poor starts). But, when we come together, the character is shown. This team always has that X-factor that stands up and wants to prove to themselves that they are good enough to win championships.”

With PTI inputs