Amid captaincy controversy, AB de Villiers clarifies his “not genuine, ego-driven” comment on Hardik Pandya

Mumbai Indians captain Hardik Pandya has been the constant target of trolls since the start of the Indian Premier League (IPL) 2024 campaign. Fans did not welcome the management’s decision to strip Rohit Sharma of his captaincy responsibilities and give the award to India’s all-rounder. As MI faced tough results in the ongoing IPL campaign, and became the first team to be eliminated, the pressure on Hardik increased, with many questions being raised over his leadership abilities. Even former Royal Challengers Bangalore and South Africa star AB de Villiers had criticized Hardik’s ‘brave style’ of captaincy. But, now he has issued a clarification.

“I see there’s a lot of activity on I’m very glad that some of you have pointed this out, delete some of those comments and leave the rest,” AB de Villiers said in one of his videos.

It is better to avoid sharing parts of an excerpt as one’s entire opinion, without the full context of what was said.

: https://t.co/fnZsF5eqlR#IPL2024 #360live #crickettwitter pic.twitter.com/a69Ulv0JMB

– AB de Villiers (@ABdeVilliers17) 13 May 2024 ” target=’_blank’>Youtube Channel.

In a refreshing take, de Villiers said that he really liked Hardik’s captaincy, before clarifying why he said it was “not real”. He also admitted that the all-rounder’s leadership style is not one that is easy for senior players to adopt.

“I have said it very clearly and I will say it again – I love the way Hardik Pandya plays his game. I love the way he captains. All I can say is that his The style of captaincy is something he has definitely worked on. It’s not something you can walk out the door and be a brave captain.

“Why I say it’s not always real is because I played exactly the same way. I wasn’t the soft-spoken, genuine AB de Villiers that I was at home. The guy you saw on the field was kind of ‘a Acting’ was ‘Sometimes, you have to take charge and show the opposition that you are a force to be reckoned with. What I am saying is that it is not always easy to adopt the style, especially for some senior players.

De Villiers further said, “I love Hardik Pandya, that’s what I said. To you journalists, I’m sorry to burst your bubble.”