I’m sure Hardik Pandya secured a spot in hearts of every Mumbai Indians fan: AB de Villiers

Hardik Pandya was massively criticised during IPL 2024. His move from Gujarat Titans to Mumbai Indians was not welcomed by the fans, and things escalated when he was named the captain of the team. He replaced Rohit Sharma at the helm of things and that infuriated the Mumbai fans who booed the star all-rounder for the entire IPL and also racial slurs and abusive words to describe him.

There were talks of him not making it to the India team for the T20 World Cup but BCCI and the selectors had no doubt about his abilities. They backed the all-rounder and he repaid their faith with multiple match-winning performances. Even on the night of the finals against South Africa, he was terrific with the ball, securing India a seven-run victory at Kensington Oval, Barbados.

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Former cricketer AB de Villiers was very impressed with Hardik’s performances and believes that the cricketer has won the hearts of every MI fan. He called the all-rounder a big-match player and talked about the notable contributions he made during the World Cup.

“What stands out for me are the big moments. A guy like Hardik Pandya who's been through a roller-coaster himself with Mumbai Indians – moving from Gujarat to Mumbai – and all the criticism he coped with, getting the ball from the captain in the final of the T20 World Cup. That was his moment to go like, 'You know what… all Indian fans out there, this is what I am about as a cricket player',” De Villiers said on his YouTube channel.

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“He made everyone proud out there. Even though I did not want him to succeed like that, I look back and have a lot of respect for that. He is a big man for a big moment and that's exactly the way he played. To all you Mumbai Indians fans out there who doubted him, I'm pretty sure he has secured a spot in your hearts for the future,” he added.