IPL 2024 was horrific for MI skipper Hardik Pandya. In 14 matches he only scored 216 runs at an average of 18, and then with ball could only bag 11 wickets. Mumbai Indians too could not make it to the playoffs and were rather poor. On top of that, Pandya was booed by the hostile Mumbai crowd. But this year, the 31-year-old skipper made a special appeal to the home crowd.
Hardik Pandya Wants MI Crowd’s Support
Of course a lot has changed since the last year, where Hardik Pandya played key roles in the Champions Trophy and T20 World Cup victories. So, at the MI press conference on Wednesday, he appealed, “When I go out to bat, cheer for me, when I hit a six, cheer for me. When I go out for toss, cheer for me. I don’t want to see any colour other than our colour (at the Wankhede Stadium). That’s all that I wish for.”
Time for a Turnaround from Last Year
This year, in IPL 2025, Hardik expects nothing but a total turnaround from the previous season, where just about nothing worked for them. And he also realises how important he is for the fortunes of the team. “It has been great. It has been an entertaining journey; difficult, yes, but entertaining. I’ve always considered myself an important player for a team. If I’m executing my all-round skills, it will always benefit the team,” said the MI skipper.
Meanwhile, MI open their campaign against CSK in Chennai on March 23. They are already presented with a few challenges, as their prime bowler, Jasprit Bumrah is nursing an injury. He might go on to miss a few matches, that doesn’t bode well for the team.
Full MI Squad for IPL 2025
Jasprit Bumrah, Suryakumar Yadav, Hardik Pandya, Rohit Sharma, Tilak Varma, Trent Boult, Naman Dhir, Robin Minz, Karn Sharma, Ryan Rickelton, Deepak Chahar, Allah Ghazanfar, Will Jacks, Ashwani Kumar, Mitchell Santner, Reece Topley, Krishnan Shrijith, Raj Angad Bawa, Satyanarayana Raju, Bevon Jacobs, Arjun Tendulkar, Lizaad Williams, Vignesh Puthur, Corbin Bosch.
