Hardik Pandya is a gem of a cricketer and has been at his best for Team India, and in the IPL for whatever franchise he has been associated with. But the 2024 season was a horrific one for the all-rounder, where not only he failed as a batter, bowler and skipper, but was also booed by the MI supporters at Wankhede.
Hardik Pandya Booed by MI Supporters
But since then, he of course has been instrumental in landing two ICC trophies to India. And former MI coach Mark Boucher is only certain, that he will once again be at his very best in IPL 2025, starting March 22. “It was really tough for him (Hardik Pandya) last season. He was being booed by the crowd every time he took the field, he deserves better, he deserves 100 per cent respect,” said Boucher, a JioStar expert.
“A cricketers never wants such a thing to happen with him. But he is a tough character,” he added. Last season, when all this transpired, Boucher was at the helm of affairs at MI, and witnessed everything first hand. “He is a battle-hardened cricketer. He has been through tough times, injuries, form, many things but he overcame everything and achieved success. The greats of the cricket have to be tough and he has shown that,” Boucher said.
Mark Boucher & Harbhajan Back Skipper for Excellent IPL 2025
“IPL is better with Hardik on the field, the game of cricket is better with Hardik on the field,” he added. Meanwhile, that is not it. Former MI skipper Harbhajan Singh also echoed the same sentiments for the current MI leader. “He (Pandya) is a very confident player, very positive guy. He has tremendous self-belief that he can do anything. That makes him different from others,” Harbhajan, also a JioStar expert, said.
“It’s really heartening to see (the way) he has progressed after a difficult last year. Things have changed for him. He helped India win two ICC trophies. This year he will be at his best. All the wrong things of the past are gone, it is a fresh year for him.”
