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Hardik Pandya, currently under scrutiny for his leadership issues and personal form, will arrive in New York Sunday afternoon Eastern Time. The Mumbai Indians captain, who faced significant criticism from fans for his underwhelming performance in the Indian Premier League (IPL), has been vacationing overseas. Sources close to him confirm that he is on his way to New York.
The Indian team left Mumbai for New York on Saturday night (May 25). Pandya did not board the team flight as he was in an undisclosed location overseas. After a personally and professionally stressful IPL season, Pandya flew out of the country after Mumbai Indians’ campaign ended. However, he will join the team in time for the first practice session in New York. Pandya is the vice-captain of the team, led by Rohit Sharma, in the June 1-29 Twenty20 World Cup in the US and West Indies.
During the IPL, Pandya was in the spotlight for his disappointing performance and his failure to lead the Mumbai Indians to a respectable position. The team, in fact, finished at the bottom of the table. MI coach Mark Boucher had hoped it will be a learning curve for the allrounder.
“A lot of the stuff that he’s going through is, personally, maybe a little uncalled for. It’ll certainly be a learning curve for Hardik as his growth in leadership. While times are tough now, a couple of things will pass and it’ll make him a tougher leader and it’ll certainly grow him in the role as well,” Boucher told a press conference after MI played their last game on May 17.
Meanwhile, the Indian team, excluding Sanju Samson, Yashasvi Jaiswal, Yuzvendra Chahal, and Avesh Khan – all Rajasthan Royals players who played Qualifier 2 of the IPL in Chennai on May 24 – could not, understandably, take the flight on the night of May 25. They will join the team later, just like Rinku Singh, who will be playing in the IPL final on Sunday night. Rinku is among the three traveling reserves named by the selectors.
According to sources in the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI), Virat Kohli sought permission to join the squad late.
The rest of the squad, including Rohit Sharma, Suryakumar Yadav, Rishabh Pant (WK), Shivam Dube, Ravindra Jadeja, Axar Patel, Kuldeep Yadav, Arshdeep Singh, Jasprit Bumrah, Mohammed Siraj, and substitutes Shubman Gill and Khaleel Ahmed, left on Saturday night.
