Should ‘struggling’ Hardik Pandya be dropped from T20 World Cup? NDTV poll results say… | cricket news

Indian cricket team all-rounder Hardik Pandya has had a very poor IPL 2024 campaign and his disappointing form has raised big questions over his possible inclusion for the upcoming T20 World Cup 2024. Hardik remained in the headlines ahead of the IPL 2024 season. They completed a sensational trade from Gujarat Titans and Mumbai Indians. Things became even more heated when he ended Rohit Sharma’s ten-year tenure as MI captain – a decision which was not taken well by a section of his fans. Questions over Hardik’s leadership, rumors of a rift with Rohit and speculation over how other players would react to the decision became the mainstay of media reports following the move.

The situation worsened when MI suffered three consecutive defeats at the start of the competition and the captain was criticized by a section of the crowd at Mumbai’s Wankhede Stadium. The five-time champions found some form in the competition but it was not enough as they are currently placed ninth in the IPL 2024 points table with just 6 points from 9 matches.

Hardik’s performance as a player was also quite disappointing for MI fans as he scored just 197 runs in 9 matches and with the ball, he took 4 wickets at a very high economy rate of 11.95.

Ahead of the T20 World Cup 2024 squad announcement, NDTV Sports conducted a poll to see what fans think. According to a poll conducted on NDTV Cricket’s WhatsApp channel, fans believe that Hardik should not be a part of the Indian cricket team for the competition.

Take a look at the poll here-

Although the numbers may not be in Hardik’s favour, the Tina (there is no substitute) factor keeps him in contention. A medium pace bowling all-rounder is a rare commodity for the Indian cricket team and considering the fact that there is no other option, the selectors can pick him.

Currently, it looks like the selectors will go with three specialist fast bowlers and other all-rounders like Ravindra Jadeja and Axar Patel will only provide spin options, with Hardik likely to be selected as the fourth fast option and middle-order batsman. To end the match.