‘Hardik got support from the team’: Jasprit Bumrah opens up on Pandya's struggles and comeback

Jasprit Bumrah speaks up on the struggles and comeback of Hardik Pandya.

Over the past few months, Hardik Pandya has had a roller-coaster of experiences. His return to the Mumbai Indians—his first IPL franchise—in November last year was celebrated, coming two years after his release. However, the situation took a downturn the following month when fans reacted negatively to the announcement of Pandya as the new captain, succeeding the five-time IPL-winning Rohit Sharma. Throughout the 2024 season, Pandya faced continuous booing from Mumbai Indians supporters at the Wankhede Stadium, their home ground. This adverse reception seemed to affect his performance, with Mumbai Indians finishing at the bottom of the table with only four wins out of 14 matches.

Despite being at a low point, Hardik Pandya made a stunning comeback, becoming one of India’s heroes in the T20 World Cup and leading the team to a dramatic final victory against South Africa last month.

During this challenging period, a few teammates remained closely in touch with Pandya, including Jasprit Bumrah. In an interview with The Indian Express, Bumrah spoke about Pandya’s struggles with fan opposition and his remarkable comeback in the T20 World Cup.

Bumrah highlighted the importance of blocking out negative thoughts, something Pandya managed to do. “We understand (that) we live in a country where emotion is really the talking point. It’s an emotion-driven country. We understand that fans do get emotional, and players are also emotional,” Bumrah began.

“It does affect that you’re an India player, and you’re playing in India, and your own fans are speaking that about you. But it is the way it is. You’ve got to take it on your chin. How can you go out there and stop people? If you start focussing on yourself, you try to shut that door,” said Bumrah.

Bumrah acknowledged that while advising to ignore criticism is one thing, acting on it is another. “It’s not that simple saying ‘just don’t focus on it.’ They’re screaming, and you can hear it, but then, the inner circle helps you. We, as a team, don’t encourage that, we don’t promote that, we don’t think that is warranted. Now, the world can think what they want to. We as a team were talking to him, if he needed support, his family will always be there. Certain things are beyond your control. If it happens, it happens.”

Bumrah also noted that the narrative surrounding Pandya changed entirely after his impressive performances in the T20 World Cup. He warned that it only takes one loss for opinions to shift again. “Now, that narrative has changed since we won the World Cup. You cannot take it seriously. Because, again, the people are singing praises. It doesn’t mean it’s the be-all and the end-all. A few days later, if we lose another game, the narrative can change. You understand it is how it is. You understand it now, because we play a sport that is so popular, every sportsman will go through these things. In football, you see fans booing the best players in the world. This is a part of the sportsman’s journey, things will happen that are not great, sometimes, it might not be fair also, but it is the way it is.”

“We have had a great life, we’re doing good things in our sport and for ourselves. All these challenges will come, but it will be better if you take it in the right manner,” said Bumrah.