The Indian pacer Mohammed Shami has slammed Mumbai Indians captain Hardik Pandya for demoting himself in the batting order during the match against Gujarat in the IPL 2024 campaign.
Mohammed Shami Slams Hardik Pandya’s Tactics
Mumbai Indians lost their opener match of the 2024 season against Gujarat by 6 runs difference. They put up a good fight but that wasn’t enough to complete the match in the favour of Mumbai based franchise.
Mohammed Shami criticized Hardik Pandya for demoting himself in the batting lineup during Mumbai Indian’s match against Gujarat Titans. He feels that Hardik brought himself under pressure in the match.
Mumbai Indians lost the match against Gujarat and Hardik Pandya’s batting strategy was criticized by Irfan Pathan, Manoj Tiwary, and Mohammed Shami.
Speaking about the MI’s batting strategy, Shami said Hardik Pandya usually bats at the No.3 or 4 position as per the last two seasons. It looks like he wants to follow MS Dhoni‘s style of finishing matches single-handedly in the final stages of the match.
“Dhoni is Dhoni. You cannot match someone else. Everyone has a different mindset, whether it is Dhoni or Kohli. You should stay in the game depending on your skill. You batted at No. 3 and 4 in the last two seasons. You are used to that position. You can at the most bat at No. 5, but not at No. 7,” said Shami.
From Commentary Panel Manoj Tiwary intervened during the discussion saying it could be the decision made by MI mentor Sachin Tendulkar as he explained Mumbai and Gujarat dugouts.
“I feel it wasn’t his call. In Gujarat, I feel, only two people were running the game, Hardik and Nehra. In the Mumbai dugout, there are some big names present.
“So probably they might have influenced him to drop down the order because they have invested a lot in young players like Tilak Verma and Brevis.
“Mark Boucher will listen to Sachin…he will then discuss with other members of the team management and then decide,” he said.
Coming to the tournament, Mumbai Indians secured 8th position in the points table. They will play their next match against Sunrisers Hyderabad on March 27 at Rajiv Gandhi International Stadium.
