'Boo whisperer' Adam Gilchrist willing to help Hardik Pandya amidst Mumbai Indians captaincy row

Mumbai Indians' (MI) dismal start to the Indian Premier League (IPL 2024) season continued as they suffered their third consecutive defeat, the last one being at the hands of the Rajasthan Royals (RR). Hardik Pandya, who replaced Rohit Sharma as MI captain, has faced hostile crowd behaviour in every game so far, with constant booing throughout the match. 

Despite being five-time champions, Mumbai have struggled under new captain Hardik Pandya, leaving him facing harsh criticism from fans and experts. Former England captain Michael Vaughan expressed his astonishment at the Indian fans' booing of Pandya, a rare occurrence in Indian cricket history.

"The big debate is whether Rohit Sharma will end up back as captain. That has caused a lot of drama here in India. The booing, I have to say, the Indian crowd just loves cricket. I have never heard them boo. I’ve certainly never heard them boo one of their own. I got the booing when he played at (Ahmedabad) against the Gujarat Titans. He’s left them and joined Mumbai. He took them to a title. So I get that in a pantomime kind of way," Vaughan said on the Club Prarie Fire podcast.

Speaking about him getting booed by the home crowd, “But for him to go to Hyderabad and get booed and then come to Wankhede and get booed by the Mumbai Indians fans while he is playing for them, I’m staggered by it. I have never seen the Indian crowd boo one of their own. It’s remarkable,” he further added.

Also read: Navjot Singh Sidhu weighs in on Mumbai Indians' captaincy change

Shows you the status that Rohit Sharma has in the game there: Adam Gilchrist 

Adam Gilchrist who was also present at the podcast, cited Rohit Sharma's immense popularity as the likely reason behind this hostile behavior towards Pandya. 

“It shows you the status that Rohit Sharma has in the game there. The mysterious manner with which it all played out initially, the pace with which it happened, everyone was stunned with Mumbai getting Hardik Pandya away from Gujarat and then Rohit relinquishing captaincy. It’s an odd one. But this is the nature of the beast in the IPL. The tribalism and intensity within fan bases. It’s hard to replicate anywhere else with that level of intensity,” he replied.

Gilchrist recounted his own ODI debut where he was booed for replacing Ian Healy, saying “I got hammered on to the field. And all the way off. So I know what (Hardik) feels like, I will just get on to Hardik, and I will get him through” he said.

Vaughan was quick to give a witty reply, "Maybe Gilly You are the man to send a message to Hardik and say look, I have been there mate, Do you want to come on the podcast and we can discuss it."

Also read: Rohit Sharma asks Wankhede crowd to not 'boo' Hardik Pandya

The former Australian wicketkeeper was ready to help the MI skipper in these tough times. "I am the boo whisperer, I know how to get inside their minds and just get them through. I will get on to Hardik, I have sent that message to MS, I will keep you posted on that and I will get him on and we can get inside his mind and help him, Dig out of the trouble they are in" he concluded.