R Ashwin comes in Mumbai Indians captain Hardik Pandya's defense amidst widespread trolling, says 'Fans wars are turning so ugly'

India's swashbuckling all-rounder Hardik Pandya has faced widespread scrutiny since his move to Mumbai Indians (MI) from Gujarat Titans (GT) as captain. He got booed by Ahmedabad and Hyderabad crowd and the online trolling has continued since MI’s two losses. As Hardik gears up to lead MI in their first home appearance, Ravichandran Ashwin has asked for a stop to the ‘fan wars’ as many feel that the former GT captain is not fit to lead MI. 
 

“Have you seen this happen in any other country? Have you seen Joe Root and Zak Crawley fans fight? Or have you seen Joe Root and Jos Buttler fans fight? It’s crazy. Have you seen Steve Smith and Pat Cummins fans fight in Australia?” Ashwin said responding to a query on his YouTube channel.
 

“I’ve said this many times. This is cricket. This is a cinema culture. I know there are things like marketing, positioning and branding. I don’t deny it. I don’t believe in all this on my side but it’s not wrong to indulge either,” he said.
 

“Fan wars should never go in this ugly a route. One should remember which country these players represent- our country. So then what warrants a cricketer getting booed? “I don’t understand. If you don’t like a player and boo a player, why should a team come out to issue a clarification? We act like this has not happened before.”

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When legends played under young Dhoni

Ashwin appealed to the fans citing examples of legendary Indian players Sachin Tendulkar, Sourav Ganguly and Rahul Dravid who were in the side when a young MS Dhoni was made captain.
 

"Why are you pretending like this hasn't happened before. Sachin Tendulkar has played under Ganguly, and both men played under Rahul Dravid. All of them have played under MS Dhoni as well." 

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"We need to get our act together. Heroes and hero worships are great. But you don't need to demean a player to make the other person look good. This is something I would like to see disappear from our country," said the Rajasthan Royals (RR) all-rounder.
 

Royals’ impressive start

While MI have lost their first two encounters, Sanju Samson-led RR have won both of them. The 35-year-old has taken one wicket in the tournament so far but he contributed with a crucial cameo in the clash against Delhi Capitals (DC).
 

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