Just few hours after being included in the India squad for the T20 World Cup 2024, Mumbai Indians skipper Hardik Pandya was dismissed for a golden duck in the ongoing IPL 2024 clash against Lucknow Super Giants at the Ekana Cricket Stadium in Lucknow on Tuesday, April 30.
After putting to bat first by LSG, Mumbai Indians suffered an early collapse in their batting line-up as the visitors lost four wickets in Rohit Sharma, Suryakumar Yadav, Tilak Varma and skipper Hardik Pandya and they were reduced to 27/4 in 5.4 overs.
Hardik Pandya walked out to bat when MI were 27/3 and many would have hoped for him to perform well after being included in the India squad as a captain for the T20 World Cup 2024. Much to the disappointment of the fans, Hardik edged the ball off LSG pacer Naveen-ul-Haq and went straight to the hands of wicketkeeper KL Rahul on the first ball after taking the crease.
After Hardik Pandya walked back to pavilion after getting out on a golden duck, fans slammed the Mumbai Indians for his failure to perform with the bat. Netizens questioned BCCI for picking the all-rounder in the squad and appointing him as captain while many believe that he shouldn't have been added to the squad given his recent struggles in the ongoing IPL 2024.
Hardik Pandya has been inconsistent with the bat in the ongoing Indian Premier League (IPL) 2024. Playing his first major tournament after recovering from ankle injury that sustained during the ODI World Cup, the all-rounder yet to come up with an impactful performance. Pandya's captaincy and form have been under scrutiny. Irrespective of that, Hardik Pandya has been picked in the 15-member squad.
In IPL 2024, Hardik Pandya has scored 197 runs at an average of 21.89 and a strike rate of 150.38 in 10 matches played so far.
