Hardik Pandya’s Declining Finishing Ability – A Growing Concern for Mumbai Indians and Team India
Hardik Pandya’s struggles with the bat have become a major talking point, with his strike rate dropping to just 120 against pace since his return to Mumbai Indians. His inability to accelerate in crucial moments played a key role in MI finishing at the bottom of the IPL 2024 points table.
A Tough Night for MI Fans
March 29 was a heartbreaking day for Mumbai Indians supporters as their captain delivered a lackluster performance against his former team, Gujarat Titans. Once regarded as one of the best finishers in T20 cricket, Hardik’s innings that night was a far cry from his peak years.
The Titans prepared a slow, black-soil pitch to counter MI, who thrive on fast-paced tracks. Chasing a target of 197, Mumbai struggled as the surface slowed down, making stroke play difficult. However, Hardik’s approach remained questionable. His poor shot selection, lack of timing, and apparent loss of confidence were evident as he crawled to 11 off 17 balls with just one boundary. This trend, which cost MI in IPL 2024, seems to be continuing in 2025.
Hardik Pandya’s Diminishing Hitting Prowess
Mumbai Indians were once blessed with two world-class finishers—Hardik Pandya and Kieron Pollard—who played pivotal roles in their back-to-back title wins in 2019 and 2020. Their ability to add 60-70 runs in the final four overs made MI a dominant force.
Between 2019 and 2021, Hardik was among the most destructive batters in both IPL and international cricket. During this period:
- His strike rate against pace was 169, with an average of 28.68.
- In death overs, his strike rate soared to 200.31, making him a nightmare for bowlers.
Fast forward to 2024, and the picture is starkly different. Since returning to MI, he has scored at a poor strike rate of 119.42 against pace, facing 103 deliveries.
When analyzing his performance based on length since IPL 2023, a concerning trend emerges:
- He still punishes full-length deliveries, striking at 190.
- However, against hard-length deliveries, his strike rate and average drop significantly.
This issue has always been present in his game, but earlier, he found ways to counter it. Now, his struggles against anything other than full-length deliveries make him unreliable as a finisher.
A Shift in Batting Order?
Moving Hardik Pandya up the order might seem like a solution, but his struggles against spin create another problem. Since 2023:
- He has averaged 45 against spin in middle overs (7-16),
- But his strike rate remains a sluggish 123, which is not up to modern T20 standards.
For Team India, this decline is less of a concern due to the emergence of players like Rinku Singh, Riyan Parag, Nitish Kumar Reddy, and Ashutosh Sharma. However, for Mumbai Indians, it presents a growing crisis.
MI made a bold decision to bring Hardik back from Gujarat Titans and hand him the captaincy ahead of IPL 2024. But if his batting struggles persist, the franchise might be forced into yet another tough decision regarding his role in the team.
