The skipper of Mumbai Indians, Hardik Pandya, is currently facing a challenging period in this year's Indian Premier League (IPL) season. The team, celebrated for clinching the title five times, has yet to secure a win in its first three outings of IPL 2024.
Their most recent setback was witnessed by their own supporters at Wankhede Stadium on a Monday evening, facing defeat at the hands of the Rajasthan Royals.
Pandya booed again by home fans
Compounding the situation was Pandya's reception by the home crowd, who didn't hesitate to express their disapproval with vocal boos and jeers during the game, signalling their discontent with the leadership shift.
Commentator Sanjay Manjrekar, who is from Mumbai, had to ask the home fans to "behave" when Pandya was first booed at the toss.
And then it was Rohit Sharma, credited with guiding the franchise to five IPL victories, felt compelled to calm the crowd during the Royals' batting effort to ease off the criticism towards Pandya.
A clip featuring Sharma attempting to soothe the spectators along the sideline became widespread online amidst the match. However, the situation depicted in the video might not fully capture what truly occurred.
What actually happened
The Free Press Journal disclosed a newly obtained video that illustrates Sharma was not attempting to halt the jeering directed at Pandya.
According to a source sitting in the Garware Stand, Sharma's actions were in response to fans chanting his name in high decibels. Every time he came to long off to field, he was greeted with loud cheer and there wasn’t any sloganeering against Hardik Pandya when Hitman was guarding the boundary.
Although, there were moments of booing, like during the coin toss, Pandya’s wicket and after him missing a tough catch. However, the video that went viral on X claiming to show Sharma asking for calm was not directly addressing the backlash against Mumbai's newly-appointed captain.
The 36-year-old responded with a gesture acknowledging his supporters as they hailed him "Mumbai cha raja Rohit Sharma (Rohit Sharma, king of Mumbai)."
Following this third consecutive defeat, by six wickets, Mumbai Indians find themselves at the bottom of the standings, remaining as the sole team without a victory in IPL 2024.
The squad is slated to compete again on their home ground, hosting Delhi Capitals at the Wankhede Stadium, scheduled for April 7 at 3.30 pm IST.
