Mumbai Indians captain Hardik Pandya offered prayers at the Somnath Temple in Gujarat on Friday. The video of the Indian all-rounder offering milk to Lord Shiva and then chanting slokas with folded hands was shared by news agency ANI. Hardik, like many other MI cricketers, is currently on a break due to the six-day gap the franchise received in the ongoing IPL 2024.
Hardik Pandya Going Through Toughest Phase
Hardik is going through one of the toughest phases of his professional career. Ever since he moved back to MI from the Gujarat Titans and was named as captain by the five-time champion, replacing one of the most successful captains of the tournament, Rohit Sharma, he has been subjected to endless trolls, boos in the stadium and heavy criticism from various quarters.
Hardik’s Performance Is Not Upto Mark
The fact that MI lost their first three matches of the 17th edition and Hardik himself has been below-par, has only made the matters worse. Hardik Pandya didn’t even bowl in MI’s last match against RR and his scores in the tournament so far have been 11, 24, and 34.
Former India head coach Ravi Shastri advised Pandya to stay calm and weather the storm with solid performances.
Suryakumar Yadav To Return In-Game
They, however, have received a huge boost in the form of Suryakumar Yadav. The No.1 T20I batter missed the first three matches of the season due to an injury. If Suryakumar plays, the Hardik Pandya-led team will hope that his presence helps them with the anticipated turnaround.
The 33-year-old aggressive batter has been out of action since January. He underwent surgery to treat sports hernia and was also nursing an ankle injury that he had sustained during India’s tour of South Africa late last year.
MI are languishing at the last position in the IPL 2024 points table and is the only side yet to win a match this season.