Former India batter Sadagoppan Ramesh has taken Mumbai Indians captain Hardik Pandya to task, alleging that the all-rounder hasn\u2019t been bold or consistent enough to address MI\u2019s troubles during IPL 2026. Ramesh\u2019s comments come as the five-time champions sit on the brink of a group-stage exit, having managed only two wins from nine league matches.<\/p>\n
Ramesh further claimed that Hardik\u2019s impact has been lacking in all departments, noting that the MI skipper has produced 146 runs while also taking just four wickets in the tournament. In Ramesh\u2019s view, the squad needs a captain who leads from the front rather than waiting for others to fix problems.<\/p>\n
\u201cHe wants to stay back and let others sort out the issues. People in a team are smart\u2014they will understand whether the captain is truly guiding them from the front or just hiding behind. If a captain stays behind, the players will never give their best for him,\u201d Ramesh said on Star Sports Tamil.<\/p>\n
He added that, while it\u2019s one thing for a player to underperform, captaincy brings a bigger responsibility\u2014especially in high-pressure moments. \u201cIt\u2019s one thing to fail as a player, but Hardik as a captain isn\u2019t stepping up during crises. Instead, he sends other people to correct things before he comes in himself. You\u2019re defending a target of 160, and you only start bowling after 85 runs have already been put on the board. This is the same guy who helped India win the World Cup by bowling the key overs under Rohit. Rohit used Hardik brilliantly in tense situations. Hardik himself used to do it for GT, but for MI he isn\u2019t doing it,\u201d Ramesh said.<\/p>\n
Ramesh also criticised Suryakumar Yadav\u2019s current form, while suggesting that Hardik\u2019s shortcomings have been partly masked by a larger run of poor results. \u201cHardik Pandya gets two chances in a match\u2014batting and bowling. Many people point to Suryakumar Yadav\u2019s struggles to defend Hardik. But while Surya is not delivering with the bat, Hardik is also not contributing in batting and bowling. His strike rate has been very poor in this IPL, and he has also conceded runs with the ball,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n
Ramesh concluded by saying that Hardik\u2019s tactical use of the bowling unit, particularly during the powerplay, has also been questionable. \u201cHardik Pandya is also using the bowlers badly in the powerplay,\u201d he added.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
Former India batter Sadagoppan Ramesh has taken Mumbai Indians captain Hardik Pandya to task, alleging that the all-rounder hasn\u2019t been bold or consistent enough to…<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":4,"featured_media":7448,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_yoast_wpseo_title":"IPL 2026: Hardik Pandya Slammed as MI Struggles, Calls","_yoast_wpseo_metadesc":"IPL 2026: Hardik Pandya under fire as MI falter\u2014former India batter Sadagoppan Ramesh questions his form, impact, and leadership amid near exit.","footnotes":""},"categories":[2],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-7449","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-ipl"],"yoast_head":"\n