"Captain Needs To Find Some Form": Ex RCB Star's No Nonsense Hardik Pandya Verdict

It has been a disappointing campaign for Mumbai Indians in the ongoing IPL 2024 till now. The five-time champions courted controversy before the start of the season when they appointed Hardik Pandya in place of Rohit Sharma as their captain - a decision that split their fanbase as well as experts. Things did not improve as they slumped to three consecutive defeats. Hardik and Co did win their next two games but a loss against Chennai Super Kings after conceding more than 200 runs in 20 overs once again led to massive criticism. Former Australia skipper Aaron Finch weighed in on MI's show in IPL 2024 and his verdict included mentions of two of their star cricketers - Hardik Pandya and Jasprit Bumrah.

“First and foremost, I think the captain needs to find some form and consistency with bat and ball. We've seen him bowl in some games and not in others, so ideally, some form with both bat and ball. I think that will go a long way. Additionally, their bowling outside of Jasprit Bumrah has lacked depth of quality and consistency,” Finch, who played for Royal Challengers Bengaluru in the past, told Star Sports.

Mumbai Indians won their match against Punjab Kings by nine runs with Jasprit Bumrah and Gerald Coetzee taking three wickets each after Suryakumar Yadav's brilliant knock.

"Very good game of cricket. Everyone's nerve got tested. We did speak about before the game that the character will be checked in this game. Naturally you think you're ahead in the game. But we knew IPL has a tendency to produce these games. Unbelievable - coming in and playing like that (Ashutosh's knock). Almost every ball hitting the middle. Happy for him and chuffed for his future. We did speak in the timeout that it doesn't matter how good we look. We'll keep scrapping in this game. We were quite soft in certain overs. Nevertheless, a win is a win," Hardik said after the match.