Former India player Manoj Tiwary has said that given how Mumbai Indians (MI) captain Hardik Pandya is making poor choices in tough conditions, he doesn’t see the five-time IPL champions going into the playoffs this IPL 2024 season.

MI have 6 matches left in the IPL this season, three of which they will play at home. The team has already lost to RR and CSK at their home and has not exactly made Wankhede into a fortress.

MI was pounded by RR at the Sawai Mansingh Stadium in Jaipur on Monday, April 22, with Sanju Samson scoring a clinical victory against the Mumbai side. Tiwary said that the MI crew was not totally on board with their captain’s ideas, which is why they were afraid to use the afterburners when the situation called for it.

Manoj Tiwary slams Hardik Pandya for bowling the first over of RR chase and not giving the ball to Jasprit Bumrah

The former hitter blasted Pandya over his fielding decisions after MI lost to RR in the Indian Premier League. Tiwary expressed frustration about Hardik Pandya taking the new ball against Rajasthan instead of Jasprit Bumrah, the world’s finest bowler.

“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. I don’t see MI progressing in the points table because these silly mistakes are being made,” Manoj Tiwary said on Cricbuzz.

Tiwary completed his analysis by stating that MI’s main issue was that they had played 8 games, while the teams above Pandya’s side had played 7. MI are presently 7th in 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.

Also Read: Harbhajan Singh Feels This Keeper-Batter Should Be The Next India T20I Captain