NEW DELHI: Former Indian cricketer
Manoj Tiwary
fired a warning to
Hardik Pandya
, suggesting that if he maintains his current captaincy approach, the Mumbai Indians, who are currently struggling, might fail to secure a spot in the playoffs.
The ex-batsman criticized Pandya's on-field decisions following MI's defeat to the Rajasthan Royals. Venting his frustration on Cricbuzz, Tiwary questioned Pandya's choice to open the bowling himself against Rajasthan instead of entrusting the new ball to Jasprit Bumrah, widely regarded as the top pacer in the world.
"If you have Jasprit Bumrah in the line-up why will you not bowl him in the first over? Buttler came off a hundred, Jaiswal was not in the best form, you need to give your best bowler the best chance of picking a wicket.
When Hardik Pandya came in, he got hit for 2 boundaries and that took the shine away from the new ball slightly, and the margin of swing reduced. Things got easier for the batter," Tiwary said.
"I don't see MI progressing in the points table because these silly mistakes are being made," Manoj Tiwary added.
Tiwary wrapped up his analysis by highlighting MI's significant issue: having played 8 games while teams above them, including Pandya's side, had only played 7 matches. MI currently sit in 7th position on the league table with 6 points.
"If this kind of captaincy continues, MI are not making the playoffs. Previously, players were with
Rohit Sharma
. Now it feels like that MI players have not bought into Hardik Pandya as the captain of the side," concluded Tiwary.
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