Hardik Pandya under fire as Ashwin, Pathan question MI captain's decision-making against CSK: ‘Handed the advantage…’

Hardik Pandya finds himself under immense pressure as Mumbai Indians captain, with the five-time Indian Premier League champions facing an early exit from the playoffs race in the ongoing season.

MI had begun IPL 2026 on a promising note with a six-wicket victory against Kolkata Knight Riders at the Wankhede Stadium on 29 March, winning their opening game of the season for the first time since 2012. Pandya and Co, however, have been on a downhill journey since then, suffering four consecutive defeats after their home win against fellow strugglers KKR.

Mumbai had snapped the losing run with a clinical 99-run victory over Gujarat Titans in Ahmedabad on Monday, the much-needed victory reviving the franchise's hopes of making a comeback at the halfway stage of the season.

The commanding win, however, turned out to be a false dawn, with MI suffering an even bigger defeat at the hands of arch-rivals Chennai Super Kings at Wankhede on Thursday. Whatever gains they had made in their Net Run Rate with their victory over GT was cancelled out in the CSK defeat, and they currently find themselves at the eighth spot with just 4 points in seven outings.

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Ashwin, Pathan questions Pandya's decision-making

Indian spin legend Ravichandran Ashwin has questioned Pandya's decision to allow CSK to bat on an excellent surface, allowing the Ruturaj Gaikwad-led side to set a challenging total with MI's batters ultimately succumbing under pressure.

Ashwin argued that a similar sequence of events had played out in the defeat against Royal Challengers Bengaluru, and wondered if Mumbai captain had even learned from that setback or not.

"I am slightly underwhelmed. Hardik Pandya won the toss and handed the advantage to a team that has only won matches in this tournament by batting first. Do you remember the first game the Mumbai Indians played? They lost in a similar fashion against RCB. In that game, RCB batted first and did what Chennai couldn't quite manage today because of the difference in batting depth," former CSK off-spinner Ashwin said in a video posted on his YouTube channel.

Also Read | Hardik Pandya admits MI failed to 'cope' with pressure of chase vs CSK after losing early wickets

Former India all-rounder Irfan Pathan made a similar analysis on his YouTube channel following CSK's commanding victory over MI.

"As I had said on the English show during the pre-match discussion, teams batting first have won four of the last six T20 matches at Wankhede. It was a tough choice for Mumbai to win the toss and elect to bat, but you have to show some courage. There was a hint of turn and assistance on this pitch, and Mumbai’s batting got completely exposed," Pathan said on his YouTube channel.

"You introduce Krish Bhagat, who is playing only his second game, for the first time in the 15th-16th over with a well-set Sanju Samson on strike. It was the wrong decision. And then you give him the final over as well. You have to accept responsibility and do better as captain," he added, reflecting on a major blunder by the MI captain during the CSK innings.