Former India player turned cricket commentator Sanjay Manjrekar asked the Wankhede crowd to “behave” as fans booed Mumbai Indians (MI) skipper Hardik Pandya during the toss against Rajasthan Royals (RR) in the Indian Premier League (IPL) 2024 season on April 1.
After being booed by the fans in Hyderabad, the MI skipper didn’t receive a warm reception at the home ground, Wankhede Stadium, as fans continued the trend of booing the all-rounder.
When Sanjay Manjrekar introduced Hardik Pandya as the MI skipper, the fans didn’t shy away from expressing themselves as they booed the 30-year-old.
While introducing the captains of both teams during the toss, Manjrekar asked the crowd to “behave” as they continued to boo the newly appointed MI skipper for the third consecutive game.
“With the two captains with me, Mumbai Indians captain Hardik Pandya, big round of applause, ladies and gentlemen. Behave!” Manjrekar said in a video posted by IPL on X.
🚨 Toss 🚨@rajasthanroyals win the toss and elect to bowl against @mipaltan #TATAIPL | #MIvRR pic.twitter.com/pziDfHNIci
— IndianPremierLeague (@IPL) April 1, 2024
Since Hardik replaced Rohit Sharma as MI skipper after returning to his original franchise following two seasons at the helm of the Gujarat Titans (GT), Hardik has faced jeers and boos from a section of fans while also facing scrutiny from former India players.
Adding to his woes, the five-time IPL champions got off to the worst possible start this season, losing their lung-opener to GT and also going down in their second to the Sunrisers Hyderabad.
Even during the pre-season press conference, Hardik and head coach Mark Boucher faced questions over the change in captaincy. In his replies, Hardik didn’t address the questions directly, triggering a backlash on social media.
Coming to the toss, Rajasthan Royals (RR) captain Sanju Samson won the toss and opted to field first against MI.
Speaking at the time of the toss, Samson said: “We want to bowl first. The wicket looks fresh, it’s the first game of the season (at Wankhede stadium), will get help for the fast bowlers. We would like to keep on doing the same things. Sandeep misses out, he is not fit. Burger comes in.”
Mumbai Indians captain Hardik Pandya said his side is hoping to play the brand of cricket everyone enjoys.
“We were planning to bowl first. It’s quite exciting to be a part of this game. We always look forward to the future, need to follow the process. Looking forward to playing a brand of cricket everyone enjoys. Playing the same team,” he said.
