Rohit Did Not Score Runs Or Win IPL Trophy...: Virender Sehwag Lashes Out At Hardik Pandya's Critics

With Hardik Pandya facing criticism from all corners following the Mumbai Indians' (MI) troubled start to the 2024 Indian Premier League (IPL) season, former India opening batter Virender Sehwag lashed out at the star all-rounder critics.

Hardik's first season leading the five-time champions has been a nightmare so far, as MI have just three wins in eight games and find themselves in an uphill battle to qualify for the playoffs. Currently, the men in blue and gold are 7th on the table.

Hardik's performance with bat and ball has left a lot to be desired, as he only has 151 runs in eight matches to his name while only registering four wickets with the ball.

Much of the blame for Hardik's poor season has been put on Hardik's shoulder, with tactical mistkates as well as a lack of runs and wickets earning him flak from the cricket fraternity. However, Sehwag was quick to point out that MI has a habit of making poor starts to their season, and the individual performances of ex-captain Rohit Sharma were also not up to par.

“I don't think (pressure is increasing on Hardik as a batter and bowler), although, maybe he is taking the pressure because of the expectations around him. But Mumbai were in the same situation last year, and few many times previously as well. It is nothing new to them. Rohit did not score runs as a captain. He did not even win the trophy as captain in the last 2-3 seasons,” Sehwag said on Cricbuzz.

“Mumbai know that they have been in situations like these so only if they perform as a team here on, will they get...but if Hardik goes with the expectation that he has to bowl and bat well and that they are not winning under his captaincy and it sort of creates a pressure on him then that is wrong.

"And to perform well he has to bat higher up the order as well, right? If you bat down the order, get about 18 balls to face then how will he perform? He needs to give himself that chance, because if he bats well, his bowling and captaincy will improve as well,” Sehwag added.

Hardik replaced five-time IPL-winning captain Rohit as MI's skipper ahead of IPL 2024 following his return to the franchise from the Gujarat Titans after a trade deal. Hardik's appointment as captain has invoked backlash from fans across the country.