Former England cricketer Kevin Pietersen has given his opinion on Hardik Pandya's challenging situation with the Mumbai Indians. Pandya has faced booing from fans at every venue, including Mumbai's home stadium, since taking over as captain from Rohit Sharma.
His appointment as captain has not been well received by fans, who disapprove of the franchise's decision to replace Sharma, who led the team to five IPL titles. The flamboyant all-rounder, Hardik Pandya, has faced intense criticism both on the field and on social media. Rohit Sharma and Virat Kohli urged the fans to stop targeting Pandya as he is an important member of the Indian cricket team.
During the intense Mumbai Indians vs Chennai Super Kings match, Kevin Pietersen criticised Pandya's captaincy for failing to utilise his spinners when the pacers were being hit all over the field. Shreyas Gopal bowled just one over on Sunday and Mohammad Nabi also failed to complete his quota.
“He lacked flexibility in his strategy during the match. Despite the seamers leaking runs, Pandya stubbornly stuck to the bowling plan formulated hours earlier rather than adapting as the situation demanded. Even Brian Lara advised bowling spin to change the tempo. A more profound tactical approach was needed.”
Pietersen claimed that Hardik Pandya is putting on a fake smile by excessively smiling at the toss and during fielding, implying that the Indian all-rounder is bothered by the booing from fans. Drawing on his own experience of facing fan backlash during his career, Pietersen empathised that he understood how it felt to have the fans turn against you.