Mumbai Indians’ new skipper Hardik Pandya was handed a 31-run defeat in the SRH vs MI match. The big margin may look small when considering the fact that 523 runs were scored in the match. But the deciding factor wasn’t the ‘less’ amount of runs that MI scored but rather the amount of runs they gave while bowling first.
A tactical error-filled day from Hardik Pandya drew much criticism. The all-rounder bowled himself before Jasprit Bumrah and continued to bowl others like Gerald Coetzee and Kwena Maphaka ahead of the pace spearhead. Talking about their bowling and mammoth score in the post-match interview, he said:
“Wicket was good. No matter how bad or good you bowl, if the opposition has to score that much (278), they have batted well. They were good, it was tough out there, almost 500 runs were scored, and the wicket was helping the batters. We could have done a few things here and there, but having said that, we have a young bowling attack, and we will learn.“
Talking about their batting and defending 17-year-old South African prodigy Maphaka, Hardik Pandya said:
“Everyone (the batters) looked good, and it is just a matter of time before we put things right. He (Kwena Maphaka) was fantastic; coming into his first game and getting overwhelmed, he was alright and backed his skillset; he just needs some game time.“
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