"Hardik has been phenomenal in the way he has been playing for the team" - Tim David downplays concerns over MI skipper's form

Mumbai Indians' big-hitter Tim David has downplayed concerns over skipper Hardik Pandya's batting form in IPL 2024. He asserted that the captain is doing a good job of holding the innings together, allowing the other batters to flourish.

In four matches, Hardik has contributed 108 runs at an average of 27 and a strike rate of 138.46. He has only hit 11 fours and three sixes. While some questions have been raised about the Mumbai Indians captain's below-par strike rate, David said that there are no such worries in the MI camp.

Ahead of Mumbai Indians' big clash against Royal Challengers Bengaluru at the Wankhede in Mumbai on Thursday, April 11, David threw his weight behind the MI captain.

"Hardik has been phenomenal in the way he has been playing for the team. That is what we need at some point. Sometimes it is me, sometimes it is other guys," the MI batter was quoted as saying by news agency PTI.

"You could go look at the first game where Hardik hit two boundaries in his first two balls. (We have) absolutely full faith in him. We know his power; we know how good he is. When he gets into that situation, he is going to win games for us," the 28-year-old went on to elaborate.

In Mumbai's previous IPL 2024 match against Delhi Capitals, Hardik contributed 39 off 33. While he scored at a strike rate of under 120, David opined that the captain set the platform for him and Romario Shepherd to launch the final assault.

"Look at the last match, we struggled really hard for momentum towards the back end (against Delhi Capitals). Hardik played a perfect innings that set the platform for myself and Romario (Shepherd) to go on with at the end," the Aussie cricketer said..

"We got ourselves to a platform and he got that one ball that he could have hit for six. He hit it high on the bat and missed the middle and he is out (and) that is how the game goes," he went on to add.

While David contributed 45* off 21 against Delhi Capitals, Shepherd clobbered 39* off only 10.

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"It goes both ways" - Tim David on Impact Player rule

The Impact Player rule, which was introduced last year in the IPL, has continued to generate interest this season as well. Courtesy of the rule, teams have the option of extending their batting order by including an extra batter in the line-up.

While many experts reckon that the Impact Player acts as an advantage, David feels that it can work both ways.

"With the extra freedom of having an extra batter, there is maybe a little bit less responsibility. Some people are playing with a little bit more freedom or throwing caution to the wind. It goes both ways. KKR, the way they have been playing, they have been scoring a lot of runs," the right-handed batter explained

"The other night, they were playing the same way (against Chennai Super Kings). They were looking to go big or bust a bit. They fall in a heap in the middle order [sic]," David added.

Mumbai Indians' 29-run win over Delhi Capitals was their first triumph in IPL 2024. Before that, they had suffered losses to Gujarat, Hyderabad and Rajasthan.