Hardik Pandya shared his struggles during IPL 2024, saying he focused on surviving tough times without giving up, and realized that cricket would help him get through it.
Hardik Pandya endured a roller-coaster journey in 2024, facing extreme highs and lows. Booed throughout the IPL season as Mumbai Indians’ new captain, he later played a crucial role in India’s T20 World Cup win. Now, after securing the ICC Men’s Champions Trophy 2025, he has shared his thoughts on overcoming adversity.
Mumbai Indians’ decision to replace Rohit Sharma with Hardik as captain led to outrage among fans. Throughout the IPL season, he was jeered, even at Wankhede Stadium. The franchise endured a disastrous campaign, finishing at the bottom of the table. Hardik’s personal form suffered as well, scoring 216 runs and taking 11 wickets.
However, just two months later, he returned to Mumbai as a hero. India ended their ICC title drought, winning the T20 World Cup in Barbados. Hardik’s decisive final over against South Africa secured a win on June 29, 2024.
Reflecting on the turbulent months, Hardik stressed the importance of perseverance. He believed staying on the field, battling through criticism, and trusting his game were key to his comeback.
“It’s always about when you don’t leave the battlefield. For me, it was about surviving, maybe not winning. That year was a year where, for the longest time, I had to hold my ground, not leave the battlefield which was the ground. I realised how everything was panning out, that cricket will be my best friend, and he will get me out of it,” said Hardik during an episode of JioStar’s ‘Superstars’.
“Yeah, it kept, I kept pushing, kept pushing. And I think when all the hard work and everything came, I don’t think I wouldn’t be able to write a script, which it turned out to be in my life. That six months of my phase where winning the World Cup and coming back and getting the kind of love we got. I think it was a complete 360 turnaround for me,” he continued.
“And I think cricket was something which I knew that if I be persistent, if I be honest with my work, if I be really hardworking, I think I’ll be able to come out of this. But when I didn’t know, as exactly said, it was written in the script by the God where it turned out to be two and a half months,” Hardik added.
Hardik Pandya Confident in Mumbai Indians’ Experienced Squad
Hardik also noted that the Mumbai Indians have built a strong and experienced squad for IPL 2025. The franchise focused on adding seasoned players, particularly in the bowling department, to handle the challenges of playing at Wankhede Stadium.
“This year, the goal was to get experience. I think you can see from the whole sheet where we wanted experienced bowling attack. Because Wankhede is where you get checked, and it can be quite intimidating playing in IPL in Mumbai, in Wankhede,” said Hardik.
“And the wickets are generally high-scoring. So we wanted to focus on people who have a lot of experience at the same point of time, who have the swing, who have the bounce on that track, which we can get the most out of. And I think somehow we have, we have made a very gun team where top to bottom we have been able to fulfill. It’s just that we all have to turn up now,” he added.
Mumbai Indians will start their campaign on March 23 against Chennai Super Kings at MA Chidambaram Stadium.
