Hardik Pandya's blame-game continues, breaks down cause behind Mumbai Indians' defeat against Lucknow Super Giants

Mumbai Indians (MI) suffered their seventh loss of the ongoing Indian Premier League (IPL) season, this time to the Lucknow Super Giants (LSG). Captain Hardik Pandya blamed their batting collapse in the powerplay for the defeat at the Ekana Stadium on April 30. Sent in to bat first, MI were in deep trouble at 28-4 after the powerplay overs. Pacers Mohsin Khan, Marcus Stoinis, and Naveen-ul-Haq shared the early wickets. Key batsmen Rohit Sharma (4), Suryakumar Yadav (10), Tilak Varma (7), and Hardik Pandya (0) fell cheaply. While Ishan Kishan (32), Nehal Wadhera (46), and Tim David (35) managed some runs, it wasn't enough according to Pandya.

Hardik Pandya reveals reason behind MI's defeat

Hardik Pandya pinpointed the cluster of wickets lost in the powerplay as the turning point, stating they couldn't recover from that early setback.

ALSO READ: Big News: Australia announce Mitchell Marsh-led T20 World Cup squad, Steve Smith, 29-ball centurion miss out of 15-member fold

"Definitely, losing early wickets in the powerplay is tough to recover from. Where we needed the most, we could not do well," Hardik said in the post-match presentation.

"Not really, you still have to see the ball and hit. The wicket was good. The ball was there to be hit and we just missed, that sort of season for us so far. I have always belleved that whenever you take to the field, sometimes you will be down, sometimes you will be up, and you have to fight. It looks difficult but there are a lot of things you can learn from this game," he added.

 

ALSO READ: 'Bowling bhi daalega, batting bhi milega’: Shivam Dube reveals motivational words of Rohit Sharma after T20 World Cup squad announcement

 

Despite Mumbai Indians' struggles against Lucknow Super Giants, Nehal Wadhera impressed with a gritty 46 runs off 41 balls. Captain Hardik Pandya was swift to acknowledge the youngster's responsible knock.

 

"He has been fantastic, the way he batted against Rajasthan and tonight. He did fantastic last year as well. It was because of the team combination that he could not play early. Looking at his talent, he will play for a lot of years for Mumbai and for India eventually," Hardik concluded.

 

Mumbai Indians' struggles continue as they slumped to their seventh loss in ten matches, leaving them languishing in ninth place. Conversely, Lucknow Super Giants celebrated a morale-boosting victory, propelling them to the coveted third position in the standings.  MI will next face Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR) on May 3 at the iconic Wankhede stadium.

MORE ON SPORTS TAK:

Sunil Gavaskar names playing XI for India's first T20 World Cup 2024 game against Ireland, no place for Shivam Dube

England announce 15-member T20 World Cup squad under Jos Buttler's captaincy; Jofra Archer makes much-awaited return
South Africa announce 15-member T20 World Cup squad under Aiden Markram's captaincy; 2 players receive maiden T20I call-up