The 2024 Indian Premier League was a tough season for Hardik Pandya. Almost every ground he played at, the crowd booed him. Regardless, he kept his cool and went about his business. How much impact it had on him only he can answer. However, fast forward to 2025, things have turned around. There were no booing this time despite the initial struggles of Mumbai Indians, and as the season went on, the results too started to go Hardik and Mumbai’s way. Sunil Gavaskar pointed out the difference and the impact crowd support would have.
“What we saw from last year to this year has been the fact that he also got the support of the crowd backing him. Last year, he would have been a little bit unsettled by the fact that the Mumbai crowd and the Mumbai supporters were not really backing him so much. But this year, they are all behind him. And they are all urging him to go on to win. They have got one game at home on the 21st,” said Sunil Gavaskar said on Star Sports.
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“And that is where we will see how they come back. And the way they have come back, we are talking about his thinking and we are talking about how his calming influence is. That is because he has not shown any emotions on the field. When there has been a misfield, when there has been a drop catch, he has just turned on his back and he has gone back to his fielding position. A lot of times, when the captain has a little bit of gesticulations, then the fielder also gets a little bit nervous. But he hasn’t done that. And so that’s the reason why Mumbai have come back so well. They normally do that. And once again, this year, I am hoping, as a Mumbai Indians fan, that they will continue to go on to win,” he added.
Mumbai Indians are currently in the fourth spot with 14 points in the IPL table, with two games in hand.
