Ambati Rayudu, a former player for the Mumbai Indians (MI), shared his thoughts on Hardik Pandya‘s leadership and the team’s IPL 2025 performance thus far. As is the case with every season, the Mumbai Indians have had a poor start, losing both of their opening games.
They lost their second match of the season to Gujarat Titans by 36 runs in Ahmedabad, and they were defeated by the Chennai Super Kings by four wickets in Chennai. Rayudu has supported the team to perform well in spite of the bad start.
“I believe the Mumbai Indians have a strong team this year; they will soon turn things around.
Rayudu stated on JioHotstar, “They have the right players; it just comes down to perfecting the combinations and positioning the pieces.”
With the Gujarat Titans, Hardik has already demonstrated his leadership abilities: Ambati Rayudu
The six-time IPL champions also discussed certain squad lineup adjustments that he thinks the club needs to do in order to win the championship in their upcoming matches. Additionally, he thought back on Pandya’s struggles from the previous season and gave the all-rounder credit for persevering through them. According to Rayudu, he thinks Hardik might lead the five-time champions to victory this season.
“Maybe sending Naman Dhir at No. 3 and pushing Hardik Pandya up the order could strengthen the batting line-up,” he stated. Regarding Hardik, he has already demonstrated his leadership abilities with the Gujarat Titans, and I don’t believe any other Indian cricket player has gone through a more trying time than he has. In spite of this, he has proven to have extraordinary mental toughness by helping India win important ICC tournaments. His ability to lead the Mumbai Indians now is another indication of his tenacity. He and the team will undoubtedly recover well.
Speaking of the Mumbai Indians, their first home game of the season is scheduled for March 31 against the Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR).