Mumbai, Former cricketer Parthiv Patel said on Tuesday that Hardik Pandya and Jasprit Bumrah had got the full backing of Rohit Sharma when they were struggling in the early part of their IPL stints at Mumbai Indians.
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Parthiv compared Rohit’s leadership with CSK talisman MS Dhoni, saying the Mumbai cricketer never “made a blunder”, while the Chennai captain had erred on a few occasions during his long IPL stint.
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“I think the most important thing is that he supports his players. The best examples of this are Hardik Pandya and Jasprit Bumrah. Bumrah came into the MI set up in 2014 and by 2015, his performance wasn’t great,” Parthiv told Jio Cinema on Tuesday.
“They even pondered sending him back after half the season. But Rohit Sharma believed in his ability and from 2016 onwards, his performance has been excellent,” added the former India wicketkeeper, who played 25 Tests.
Bumrah, who came into the MI setup in 2014, has gone on to become the country’s go-to pacer in all three formats and played a pivotal role in Mumbai’s success in IPL.
Pandya, after becoming a part of the five-time champions in 2015, went on to lead Gujarat Titans to the IPL title in 2022 and is now back as MI skipper, replacing Rohit.
“Same with Hardik Pandya. He came in 2015 and became popular. His 2016 season wasn’t great but MI stuck with him and Pandya became the player he is today.”
He added that Rohit brings a sense of calm to the side, which is unmatched.
“The best example is the two IPLs MI won by just one run each. That would not have been possible if you don’t have a captain who can stay calm on the ground.
“When there’s a tense match, sometimes wrong decisions or blunders are made. But the hallmark of Rohit Sharma’s captaincy is that in the last 10 years, you don’t remember that he made a blunder.
“Even Dhoni has made blunders like giving Pawan Negi an over, but if you see Rohit, you’ll never see a blunder. Keeping the process simple is something that Dhoni advises but we see Rohit practice that in games,” added Parthiv.
Former India pacer Zaheer Khan said Rohit takes decisions based on circumstances, which is one of the most difficult tasks for a captain in IPL.
“You can plan for a game in advance but nobody knows how proceedings will unfold in the middle. He acts according to situations and takes decisions, and many times they are different from what may have been planned in the run-up to the game.
“I think that’s his strength. In the IPL, taking on-the-spot decisions is one of the biggest challenges for captains and he did that well for MI,” he added.
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