Former India batter Manoj Tiwary believes Mumbai Indians (MI) captain Hardik Pandya does not have any support in the team. With MI's playoff chances hanging by a thin thread, Tiwary said that Pandya hasn't been able to win the confidence of his teammates as they haven't rallied behind him. Kolkata Knight Riders' (KKR) Indian Premier League (IPL) 2012-winning member also said that MI players need to share the responsibility with their captain.
"Look, a captain is supposed to win the confidence of every single player in the squad; you have to step up and be a true leader. Right? However, observing the situation, it seems as though no one is truly standing by Hardik. It feels like no one is rallying behind him; the kind of support he ought to be receiving simply isn't materialising," said Tiwary on Cricbuzz.
"Yes, the captain certainly has a specific role to play—and perhaps, he isn't fulfilling that role as effectively as he could be. From my perspective, he isn't quite living up to the task. But beyond that, the players themselves need to shoulder their share of the responsibility," he added.
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Tiwary pointed out that Suryakumar Yadav hasn't ben scoring runs. Only, Tilak Varma played an outstanding knock. He considers MI's current state as 'eeply disappointing'
"Take Suryakumar, for instance: he hasn't been delivering performances on a consistent, match-to-match basis. Similarly, Tilak had one standout match, but he hasn't been scoring runs since then. If this kind of inconsistency persists among the rest of the squad, how can you possibly expect to achieve positive results? It is, quite frankly, deeply disappointing," said the 40-year-old.
MI vs CSK not El Clasico?
On May 2, CSK beat MI by eight wickets with 11 balls to spare. Tiwary went on to say that the CSK vs MI match should not be labelled 'El Clasico' of IPL anymore.
"You know how we always talk about this fixture being the "El Clsico" of the IPL? Well, you can go ahead and strip it of that title now, because it has become a completely one-sided affair. In their last seven head-to-head encounters, Chennai Super Kings have emerged victorious six times. So, it would be inaccurate to claim that this rivalry still retains its "El Clsico" status," he opined.
MI’s 1st must-win contest on May 4
This was MI’s seventh loss of the season. While they are practically still alive in the tournament, another loss will make them the first team to get ruled out out of playoffs race. Their next match is against Lucknow Super Giants (LSG) on May 4. LSG are currently at the bottom of the points table with six losses from eight games. The clash will take place at Wankhede Stadium, Mumbai.