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Batting great Sunil Gavaskar expressed his disapproval of Hardik Pandya's tactical decision during the rain-affected IPL 2025 match between Mumbai Indians and Gujarat Titans (GT). The legendary cricketer questioned Pandya's choice to entrust the final over to Deepak Chahar instead of taking on the responsibility himself. With 15 runs to defend in the last over and the dangerous duo of Rahul Tewatia and Gerald Coetzee at the crease, Chahar ultimately couldn't prevent Gujarat Titans from snatching a thrilling last-ball victory. This defeat has placed the Mumbai Indians in a precarious position in the playoff race, as they currently occupy the fourth spot with 14 points.
Sunil Gavaskar questions Hardik Pandya's tactical decision
Gavaskar was particularly critical of Pandya for seemingly lacking self-belief in such a high-pressure situation. He pointed out Pandya's proven track record of delivering crucial overs on significant occasions, including his performance in the T20 World Cup final against South Africa just last year. Gavaskar implied that Pandya's decision not to bowl the final over himself was a missed opportunity and a sign of not backing his own capabilities when the stakes were highest.
"As I explained earlier, because of the fact that he had bowled those final overs - and bowled them very well - he bowled over against Bangladesh where, I mean, we got 3 wickets, Bangladesh had to score 4 or 5, and India managed to win that game by 1. And then in the final of the ICC T20 World Cup last year in the West Indies, in Barbados, he bowled that final over and India win," Gavaskar said while speaking on JioStar.
In the recent encounter against his former team, Hardik Pandya bowled only a single over, which proved to be a costly one for the Mumbai Indians. During this over, he appeared to struggle with his bowling, failing to consistently find the correct line and length, ultimately conceding 18 runs. Adding to his critique, Sunil Gavaskar highlighted that Deepak Chahar is not typically deployed in the crucial final overs of an innings. Gavaskar pointed out that Mumbai Indians have predominantly utilized Chahar during the powerplay, leveraging his ability to extract swing with the new ball. This strategic deployment suggests that Chahar may lack the experience and familiarity required to effectively handle the pressure and nuances of bowling in the death overs.
"So with that, with one over left, I would have thought that - because, let's face it, also, you know, in commentary we heard that Deepak Chahar really hasn't bowled in the final 5 overs. This is probably, you know, one of those rare occasions, so he, you know, he's not used to bowling in the final overs. So I think that is where the... uh... but, I mean, the game could have changed," Gavaskar added.
Not just the last over, the former India captain also believes that MI paid the price for the slow over rate which brought fielding implication in the final over.
"So with that, with one over left, I would have thought that - because, let's face it, also, you know, in commentary we heard that Deepak Chahar really hasn't bowled in the final 5 overs. This is probably, you know, one of those rare occasions, so he, you know, he's not used to bowling in the final overs. So I think that is where the... uh... but, I mean, the game could have changed," Gavaskar added.
Meanwhile, MI slipped to fourth spot in the IPL 2025 points table after losing to GT. After 12 matches, MI have 14 points with seven wins and five losses. They MI will next face Punjab Kings (PBKS) on May 11 at the Dharamsala's HPCA stadium.
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