IPL 2026 | 'No one is standing with Hardik Pandya': Ex-India star minces no words on Mumbai Indians struggle
Mumbai Indians' IPL 2026 playoff hopes are all but over after an eight-wicket loss to Chennai Super Kings. Languishing in ninth place with two wins from nine matches, the star-studded team is struggling significantly. Former cricketers believe captain Hardik Pandya lacks support, and inconsistency across the squad is hindering results.
NEW DELHI: ‘Not the season, I feel’ - the dejection on Hardik Pandya’s face was evident as Mumbai Indians suffered another loss in IPL 2026, this time against Chennai Super Kings. Mumbai Indians’ hopes of qualifying for the playoffs now hang by a thread following an emphatic eight-wicket defeat. They are languishing in ninth place with just two wins from nine matches and only four points.
A star-studded Mumbai Indians side, featuring players like Rohit Sharma, Suryakumar Yadav, Pandya and Jasprit Bumrah, has five IPL titles to its name and is known for dominating opposition teams, but is struggling at the moment. There is no Mumbai Indians batter or bowler in the top five of the leading run-scorers or wicket-takers list in IPL 2026. After Mumbai Indians slumped to their seventh defeat this season, former India cricketer Manoj Tiwary feels Pandya, who took over the captaincy in 2024, has not received the support from teammates that he would have wanted.
"It was already over for me. When I sit here, I speak openly about what I see. Based on the cricket I've witnessed, a captain must win the confidence of every player; you have to be a leader.
However, it feels like no one is standing with Hardik. The support he needs simply isn't there," Tiwary said on Cricbuzz. "Yes, the captain has a role, and in my opinion, he isn't playing well.