Former India opener and 1983 World Cup winner Krishnamachari Srikkanth said on his YouTube channel that Mumbai Indians captain Hardik Pandya was afraid of bowling hard yards. Srikkanth criticized Pandya’s bowling changes in MI’s match against Chennai Super Kings at the Wankhede Stadium on Thursday.
After giving away 38 runs in his two overs in the powerplay, Pandya did not bring himself to bowl in the rest of the innings. Instead, he handed over the responsibility of bowling two overs in the death overs to fast bowler Krish Bhagat. Bhagat bowled the 16th and 20th overs of the innings, scoring 31 runs in his two overs. With the help of 16 runs in the last over, CSK scored a total of 207/6 and won by 103 runs.
“Hardik Pandya did wrong” – Kris Srikkanth
Speaking on his YouTube channel after the match, Srikkanth also criticized Hardik Pandya’s decision to bowl first after winning the toss.
He said, “A player who has bowled in the death overs in the T20 World Cup is afraid of bowling the same here. MI’s problems start here. This is why you should bat first after winning the toss. You at least have a chance to show heroics single-handedly, like Tilak Verma in the last match or Sanju Samson today. Hardik Pandya also did the wrong thing.”
“This was ‘Dubba’ captaincy” – Kris Srikkanth
Srikkanth described Pandya’s decision-making ability and his captaincy as ‘dubba’ – a term used to describe bad or shoddy things.
Srikkanth criticized the decision to bowl first, pointing to MI’s lack of success while chasing targets this season. He also called Pandya a ‘run-feeder’.
“This was Hardik Pandya’s captaincy. He should have batted first after winning the toss. Barring the KKR match, they have always lost, always chasing. Then, you are a lead bowler, who has bowled in the death overs in the T20 World Cup. Still, you are not coming to bowl and letting that boy Krish Bhagat bowl the last two overs. Hardik has become a run-feeder. He has to bat on the ball with the bat. Is also struggling.”
Also read: Mumbai Indians qualification scenario after loss to CSK in IPL 2026
Hardik Pandya is not in form with bat or ball in IPL 2026. In 6 matches, he has scored only 97 runs while taking 3 wickets at an economy rate of 12.67.
“He has lost confidence with the bat, the ball and as a captain” – Srikkanth
Mumbai Indians are now placed eighth in the points table with just 2 wins from 7 matches. This disappointing performance has dealt a major blow to their playoff qualification chances and they now face an uphill battle.
Srikkanth ended his warning by saying that MI’s poor performance has affected Pandya’s confidence in his team and its abilities.
“How do you give the ball in the death overs to a young player playing his second match? There were 4 overs, 69 runs between Hardik and Bhagat. That was the biggest difference. Kris Bhagat should have been brought forward for two overs in the middle of the innings. MI were finished there. They don’t know what to do with their 11. Hardik Pandya has lost confidence as a batsman, bowler and captain.”