Former cricket stars came to the defense of Mumbai Indians captain Hardik Pandya, who might be dealing with mental health issues.
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Pandya on dealing with mental health issues
Former Chennai Super Kings wicketkeeper Robin Uthappa said Pandya might be battling with his mental health.
The 30-year-old has received a lot of backlash from Indian fans, as MI continues to struggle in IPL 2024.
“The mocking, trolling, the memes about his fitness. You don’t think it hurts him? It hurts him. It hurts any human being,” he said on the Ranveer Show.
“How many people actually know the reality of it? Hardik is dealing with mental health issues, for sure. We, as people, I understand, as Indians, we are emotional. But it is not right to impose this kind of treatment on any human being. “
“It is unbecoming as a society for us to do that to someone and be okay with it. We should not be laughing along with it. We should not be forwarding these memes.”
“Fans need to be a little calm…”
Former Pakistan cricket team star pacer Wasim Akram said the hate towards the 30-year-old is alarming.
“This is the problem in India, Pakistan and Bangladesh. We never forget,” he said on Sportskeeda.
“We tell our kids that when Pandya’s kid is born, you have to remind him why he became captain 20 years ago.”
The Indians currently ranked seventh in the IPL standings.
Despite Pandya’s underwhelming performance this season, Akram pleaded the fans to tone down their criticisms.
“I think fans need to be a little calm. At the end of the day, he is your player. He plays for Mumbai Indians, and he is the one who can make you win. They still can qualify for the IPL 2024 playoffs. There is no point booing your own player. You can criticize a little bit, but move on,” he concluded.
