Gautam Gambhir

AB de Villiers’ comments on Hardik Pandya’s captaincy sparked active criticism from Gautam Gambhir.

Mumbai Indians’ (MI) IPL 2024 season has been a forgettable one, with the team languishing in ninth place and out of playoff contention. This disappointing performance has naturally led to scrutiny of captain Hardik Pandya’s leadership style. Former South African batter AB de Villiers commented on Pandya’s captaincy on his YouTube channel, calling it “ego-driven.” De Villiers elaborated, stating that he did not believe Pandya’s on-field behaviour was “always genuine.”

“The captaincy style of Hardik Pandya is quite bravado. It’s ego-driven in a way; chest out. I don’t think how he walks on the field is always genuine, but he has decided that is his way of captaincy. It’s almost like MS (Dhoni). Cool, calm, collective, you always got your chest out,” De Villiers said on his YouTube channel.

De Villiers’ remarks drew criticism from Gautam Gambhir, the head coach of the current IPL table-toppers, the Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR). Gambhir argued that de Villiers lacked the experience to comment on Pandya’s captaincy, as de Villiers himself had never captained an IPL team. 

“When they themselves did captaincy [were captains], what were their own performances like? I do not think that, whether it is Kevin Pietersen or AB de Villiers, there have ever been performances in their careers from a leadership point of view. Nothing. If you look up their records, it would be worse than any other leader, said Gambhir at de Villiers’ comments on Sportskeeda’s Match Ki Baat.

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“I don’t think AB de Villiers has even captained any game in the IPL or ultimately achieved anything apart from his own scores. I do not think he has achieved anything from a team point of view. Hardik Pandya is still an IPL-winning captain. So, you should only compare oranges to oranges, not apples to oranges,” added Gambhir.

De Villiers, facing backlash for his initial comments, released a follow-up video clarifying his position. He explained that he was not criticising Pandya’s approach but rather relating to it. De Villiers admitted to adopting a similar confident persona on the field, describing it as a necessary “act” to project strength against opponents.

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Last Updated on May 14, 2024