“Hardik’s statement regarding Dhoni demonstrates a lack of confidence and transparency within MI”: Gilchrist offers a novel “Rohit Sharma” theory
The Wankhede crowd jeered Hardik Pandya once more as the Mumbai Indians suffered their fourth IPL 2024 defeat on Sunday. Mumbai was the favorite to chase down 206 in the night game with the dew setting in, going into their home match against the reigning champion Chennai Super Kings on a two-match winning streak. Even though Rohit Sharma scored a valiant century, MI was left 20 runs short due to excellent bowling from the CSK fast bowlers in the middle overs. When Hardik Pandya emerged for the toss on Sunday, when he was crushed by MS Dhoni in the final over for CSK, and when the game concluded with MI dropping to the eighth position in the standings, the jeers seemed to be louder.
Speaking to Cricbuzz, former Australian cricketer Adam Gilchrist offered his thoughts on the animosity shown by the home crowd towards their skipper. He proposed a novel idea dubbed “Rohit” to explain why the fans have yet to come around to Hardik. Although deals have always occurred in the league, he felt that MI’s position was a bit sudden. They not only signed Hardik “out of the blue,” but they also made him captain right away, keeping the supporters from witnessing the transitional period. “Well-known teams are victims of their own prosperity. Fans frequently feel as though they have no stake in unexpected trades that happen out of the blue. They are taken aback because they believe they are a part of the larger picture.
The abrupt nature of this Hardik deal and the change from Rohit to Hardik, regardless of Rohit’s happiness or lack thereof, were both noteworthy. Thus, that explains the source of this sensation,” he stated. Speaking on the matter further, Gilchrist expressed concern about the state of MI following Hardik’s post-match remark about MS Dhoni, stating, “There’s a man behind the stumps who tells them what’s working.”
The Australian icon believed the statement indicated that there is a sense of uncertainty in the dugout and that Hardik is not receiving the same level of backing from his MI teammates. I think that Dhoni line is fascinating. It suggests that he might be experiencing some lonewolf feelings right now. Perhaps the reason he feels alone and unsupported is that all of this is having some influence on him. However, his assessment of the opposition is that, hold on, he has the backing of an obviously knowledgeable person there. It gives me some insight into Hardik’s current state of mind as well as the doubt and hesitancy in the MI dugout,” he remarked.
