The five-time champions had a rough start to the tournament, losing their first three matches consecutively against Gujarat Titans (by 6 runs), Sunrisers Hyderabad (by 31 runs), and Rajasthan Royals (by 6 wickets).
However, they managed to get their campaign back on track with two wins against Delhi Capitals and Royal Challengers Bengaluru. But succumbed to another defeat against Chennai Super Kings by 20 runs.After the defeat, Pandya, during the post-match presentation, had said: “There’s a man (Dhoni) behind the stumps who tells them what’s working.”
This comment seemed to suggest that Mumbai Indians lack the same level of guidance and support that CSK enjoys under Dhoni’s leadership.
Former Australia wicket-keeper batsman Adam Gilchrist, analysing Pandya’s post-match comments, concluded that not everything is running smoothly within the Mumbai Indians camp.
“That line about Dhoni is interesting. It tells that maybe he is feeling a bit of a lone wolf at the moment. Maybe it is all having a bit of an effect because he is having the feeling that he has not got support around him. But his observation of the opposition is that hang on, he (Gaikwad) has got the support there, an experienced one obviously. It tells me a bit about the mindset of Hardik at the moment and the uncertainty and hesitation in the MI dugout,” Gilchrist said on Cricbuzz.
“High-profile teams are a victim of their own success. There are often trades that come out of the blue, and fans feel like, ‘hand on, we are not invested in this’. They feel that they are part of this big picture and hence feel blindsided. The way this Hardik traded came out of nowhere and the transition from Rohit to Hardik…whether Rohit was happy or not or if he was considered or not. So that is where this feeling is coming,” Gilchrist said.
Mumbai Indians will now take on Punjab Kings on Thursday.