As Mumbai Indian fans and Indian cricket fans in general have been questioning the Mumbai Indians management and their decision of replacing “Hitman” Rohit Sharma by Hardik Pandya as the captain four months ago, Robin Uthhappa sided with Pandya.
Explaining the reason for the replacement in The Ranveer Show podcast, Uthhappa reminded the audience of how in 2013 Rohit Sharma had also taken the place of then-captain Ricky Ponting. Needless to say, that decision was a smart one considering Rohit Sharma became the first IPL captain to win 5 titles. The team had not won any trophies until then since 2008, when IPL started. Sharma was accepted by the seniors and fans with wide arms even in the middle of the season.
“Hardik Pandya is their discovery. They did it through their scouting methods. So they are essentially looking at a pure Mumbai Indians boy. When captaincy was given to Rohit Sharma it was taken from Ricky Ponting in the middle of the season. This is the same franchise. All the senior guys Sachin Tendulkar, Harbhajan Singh, and Ricky Ponting supported Rohit,” Uthappa said in the TRS podcast.
Uthhappa offers explanation on TRS podcast
The prime concern for MI fans was that Rohit was still going strong, he was constantly delivering for the team and is still in need for all formats. Why was he then replaced? Why was Hardik brought into this equation when all was going good, especially when Pandya was already holding captaincy for GT.
To this Uthhappa said, there are three perspectives one should judge to understand the entire situation. The first is of the franchise – MI. The second is of Hardik Pandya, the new captain and the third is that of Rohit Sharma, the former skipper. It was only because of the back and forth discussions and required criteria for the team that led to this decision.
Several others have come to Pandya’s rescue after relentless trolling from “fans”.
Ever since getting the captaincy for Mumbai Indians four months ago, Hardik Pandya has not been able to escape the wrath of cricket fans in India. The player has been getting bullied and trolled online as well as in the stadium by GT and MI fans both the same. Hardik was the captain for Gujrat Titans before he got the role in Mumbai Indians.
Several cricketers, actors and fans have since showed up for Pandya, claiming he’s not the one at fault as this is just a part of the game. One of the many people who defended Pandya was Ravichandran Ashwin, Indian off-spinner and a fan favourite.
“Have you seen this happen in any other country? Have you seen Joe Root and Zak Crawley fans fight? Or have you seen Joe Root and Jos Buttler fans fight? It’s crazy. Have you seen Steve Smith and Pat Cummins fans fight in Australia?” said Ashwin.
Famous Indian actor known for his philanthropic actions, Sonu Sood also stood up for Hardik saying its not the players but the fans who have failed.
“We should respect our players. Players who made us proud, players who made our country proud. One day you cheer for them, next day you boo them.
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