Although the IPL 2024 is still in its initial stage, Hardik Pandya is having a tough time while leading Mumbai Indians (MI) in the cash-rich tournament.
Hardik completed a high-profile trade from Gujarat Titans (GT) to MI ahead of the IPL auction last December. Soon after the trade, the all-rounder replaced five-time IPL winning skipper Rohit Sharma as the Mumbai captain.
Under Pandya’s captaincy, MI have lost their first two games in the ongoing season so far. While the five-time champions lost to GT by 6 runs in their campaign opener, they suffered a heavy 31-run defeat at the hands of Sunrisers Hyderabad (SRH) in their second fixture.
Amid the losses, Hardik Pandya is also facing the wrath of Mumbai fans. During the SRH game, the all-rounder was subjected to brutal trolling, which included ‘Rohit, Rohit’ chants. He was also booed by the Ahmedabad crowd in MI’s first match.
Disappointed with the behaviour of the fans, veteran India and Rajasthan Royals spinner R Ashwin on Friday (March 29) came out in support of the Mumbai Indians captain.
Ashwin called for an end to fan wars while speaking on his YouTube channel with cricket analyst Prasanna Agoram.
When a user asked if it was time for the MI management to step in and issue a statement as “it was really (the) management’s poor transfer”, Ashwin replied: “Neither has any role to play. Neither the franchise not the player has a role to play in this at all. I think the responsibility and the onus lies on the fans.”
“Have you seen this happen in any other country? Have you seen Joe Root and Zak Crawley fans fight? Or have you seen Joe Root and Jos Buttler fans fight? It’s crazy. Have you seen Steve Smith and Pat Cummins fans fight in Australia? I’ve said this many times. This is cricket. This is a cinema culture. I know there are things like marketing, positioning and branding. I don’t deny it. I don’t believe in all this on my side but it’s not wrong to indulge either. Fan wars should never go in this ugly a route. One should remember which country these players represent- our country. So then what warrants a cricketer getting booed?” he added.
Ashwin urged the fans to be more civil, saying that they need to get their act together rather than attacking players.
“I don’t understand. If you don’t like a player and boo a player, why should a team come out to issue a clarification? We act like this has not happened before. (Sourav) Ganguly played under Sachin (Tendulkar) and vice versa. These two have both played under Rahul Dravid’s captaincy. These three have played under Anil Kumble and all of them have played under Dhoni. When they were under Dhoni, these players were cricket jambhavans (giants). Dhoni too played under Virat,” the off-spinner said.
“We need to get our act together. You know what the problem is? We are all happy to sit in our houses, look outside and someone else to pick up the trash. We don’t want to bother doing it ourselves. We should correct ourselves first. This is real time sports. Real times sports have real time emotions. How we go beyond that, counter it and find balance to play cricket is what this is all about. A real sport can never be compared to cinema. Heroes and hero worships are great. I am all for it. Enjoy what you like about your favourites but not at the cost of putting another player down. This is one thing I’d love to see disappear from the face of the earth in our country,” he further remarked.
Mumbai Indians will take on Rajasthan Royals in their next match at the Wankhede Stadium on Monday (April 1).
