Hardik Pandya defended by Mumbai Indians coach amid Bumrah claims as fan says Shreyas Iyer 'should have been traded'

Mumbai Indians coach Mahela Jayawardene has come out in defence of under-fire captain Hardik Pandya after the franchise suffered a fourth consecutive defeat in the Indian Premier League (IPL) 2026, angry fans started to question the all-rounder's leadership and alleged videos of him being unhappy with Jasprit Bumrah went viral.

After opening the IPL 2026 with a victory over Kolkata Knight Riders at the Wankhede Stadium, things have gone downhill for the five-time champions. Their latest seven-wicket defeat to the Punjab Kings at home has enraged the fans, who are not happy with how things are going for the franchise in IPL 2026.

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Hardik vs Bumrah at MI?

A video of Hardik Pandya being unhappy with star pacer Bumrah is going viral on social media from the PBKS match. In the same video, Bumrah can be seen apologising to Pandya for something. While it's not clear what the interaction was between the two star players, fans are speculating that all is not well within the MI camp.

Similarly, fans have also started to express their displeasure with Hardik's captaincy. The all-rounder was traded back to MI in 2024 from the Gujarat Titans. A few fans on social media wrote that the Mumbai Indians should have tried to bring in Punjab captain Shreyas Iyer, who has proven to be a big hit. Iyer helped PBKS reach the final last season and they are current on the top of the table with nine points from five matches in IPL 2026.

"Shreyas Iyer should have been traded in 2024, not Hardik Pandya. A Mumbai guy to Mumbai guy captaincy change would have been so smooth. But alas, one decision ruined everything," a fan wrote on X (formerly Twitter).

Jayawardene defends Hardik, Bumrah

Meanwhile, MI coach Jayawardene has said that Hardik should not be blamed alone for the team's poor start, as they have failed collectively.

"I don't think it's just on Hardik, I think it's on every one of us when we are not doing well," Jayawardene said after the defeat to Punjab Kings. "It's not an individual. It's pretty much on me, everyone who is involved in the management and all that to see how can we be better.

"I know we are playing good cricket. We are not taken out completely, but at the same time the other teams are much better, clinical; obviously the confidence is high as well when they have that kind of start so we just need to control phases that we can control. So I think it's not just on one individual. As a franchise, as a team management, we need to do things better to get into some rhythm and then get a few wins under our belt that will give us that confidence."

Jayawardene also defended pacer Bumrah, who has not picked a single wicket in the first five matches.

"I think Bumrah is bowling well - it's just where we are not putting pressure in the powerplay," Jayawardene said. "They [opposition batters] know they don't need to take too much risk against Bumrah as well, and we have tried a few different things, which he is trying as well, but they are batting well. I can't put a finger and say why he's not taken wicket… but as a unit we have lacked that penetration in different surfaces and that's something that we need to work [on] and see what we need to do."

MI's next match is against the Gujarat Titans on Monday in Ahmedabad.