Mumbai Indians batting coach Kieron Pollard has come out in support of under-fire Mumbai Indians captain Hardik Pandya amidst criticism. Hardik Pandya was slammed after his expensive final over in the MI vs CSK match of the IPL 2024, where he leaked 26 runs. Pollard backed him by saying that any bowler could have gone for 20 runs in the final over.
CSK’s superstar batter MS Dhoni walked out to bat with 4 more balls to go and took the game by storm with his sensational batting. MS Dhoni capitalized the over well, smashing Pandya all over the ground for back-to-back three sixes and a double off the last four balls.
Kieron Pollard Comes Out In Support Of Hardik Pandya
All thanks to Dhoni’s remarkable knock of an unbeaten 20 off 4 balls, CSK amassed a massive total of 206-4 against Mumbai Indians at the Wankhede Stadium. Notably, Jasprit Bumrah had conceded just 7 runs in the previous 19th over, limiting CSK to 180-3 with one more over remaining.
Later, after the match, during the post-match press conference, Mumbai Indians batting coach Kieron Pollard hailed MS Dhoni for his fantastic cameo. He said:
“Which player, it doesn’t matter MS Dhoni, Virat Kohli, Rohit Sharma, Hardik Pandya. You have plans on how you want to bowl to them, you go back and see if you executed them or not. But then again, MS is world class. For years and years, we see him walking onto the stadiums. We are all in awe of what he has accomplished. So again, the scoreline is 22 runs, that is the difference” he said.
Pollard also came to Hardik Pandya’s defense for his costly final over. He mentioned that any bowler could have conceded 20 runs in the last over. He said:
“Cricket is much more than what we see at the end. I think that is where we as individuals need to educate ourselves. Yes, he hit three sixes. 20-odd runs in the last over. But anyone could have gone for 20 runs in the last over. So for us, it’s much deeper than that,”
Interestingly, Hardik Pandya bowled brilliantly in his first two overs, conceding only 17 runs and taking 1 wicket. However, his decision to bowl the final over was disastrous. He conceded 43 runs off his 3-over spell, leaking runs at an economy rate of 14.30.
Kevin Pietersen and Sunil Gavaskar talking about Hardik Pandya’s captaincy. pic.twitter.com/Ja8O8eEiJP
— Mufaddal Vohra (@mufaddal_vohra) April 15, 2024
Pollard On Hardik Getting Booed By Fans
Pollard also talked about the cold treatment Hardik has been receiving off-lately from the fans. The former MI all-rounder wholeheartedly supported Hardik and cautioned critics that it’s just a matter of time before people rally behind Pandya, especially with the T20 World Cup just around the corner. Speaking about the same, Pollard said:
“I don’t know if it will affect his confidence. He is a confident guy, he has been great around the group In cricket, you have good days and bad days and I am seeing an individual who is working bloody hard to improve his skills and plying his trade,”
He added:
“I am sick and fed up looking to pinpoint individuals; cricket is a team game at the end of the day. This is an individual that is going to represent the country in less than six weeks’ time, and you all are going to cheer him and want him to do well when the time comes. So high time we try to encourage and stop nitpicking and see if we can get the best out of one of the great allrounders India has produced. He can bat, bowl and field, and has a X-factor about him. I hope very well deep down within my heart that when he comes out on top, I’ll sit back and watch everyone sing his praises.”
Pollard sees Pandya’s evolving approach positively, predicting that despite initial skepticism, he’ll win hearts, especially during the T20 World Cup. Talking about Pandya’s batting, Pollard said:
“As an individual you have to evolve. When you are young, you have the youthful exuberance. You go out and do things in a certain manner. The older you get, accountability and responsibility kick in,”
He added: “What I am seeing is the guy is evolving. We, as individuals, want to see certain things but sometimes the game does not demand certain things and [players] are going to make mistakes as you go along, as we all have done. The individual has put in the work and hard work pays off. So, all of us will be singing his praises when time comes.”
