Home
After the Mumbai Indians suffered yet another horrendous defeat in the ongoing season of the Indian Premier League (IPL), the debate surrounding a possible rift within the team has gained momentum. The debate only received more fodder when captain Hardik Pandya was involved in a discussion with wicket-keeper Ishan Kishan and Tim David during Sunrisers Hyderabad's innings.
After watching Hardik discussing strategies or seeking ideas from Kishan and David, fans were surprised that why Rohit Sharma and Jasprit Bumrah were not involved in any such discussions when the doing got tough for the Mumbai Indians.
Furthermore, in Mumbai Indians' opening match of the season against the Gujarat Titans, Hardik Pandya seemed to have walked out of a discussion with Rohit and Bumrah, which kick-started the debate around a possible rift within the team.
Hardik's captaincy leaves much to be desired
When the Sunrisers' batters were torching the Mumbai bowlers on March 27 (Wednesday), Hardik appeared to be lost for ideas and whatever he tried worked out in the favour of the opposition. Hardik's one decision was very surprising as he held back Jasprit Bumrah for a long time. After Bumrah bowled one over in the powerplay and conceded just 5 runs, he next came on to bowl after the 12th over. By then, the damage was already done.
As it turned out, the Sunrisers swaggered their way to the highest total in the history of the cash-rich tournament, posting a gigantic score of 277/3 on the board in their 20 overs.
Mumbai suffers second successive defeat
Pursuing a formidable target of 278 runs was an enormous task, and Mumbai needed an extraordinary effort from their batsmen to overcome the Sunrisers' total. Ishan Kishan and Rohit Sharma hit a combined total of seven sixes, creating a foundation for Mumbai Indians, yet the target proved to be too ambitious.
Ultimately, Mumbai Indians fell short by 31 runs, marking their second consecutive loss of the season.
MORE ON SPORTS TAK:
