VIDEO: Fan Meets His 'Idol' Hardik Pandya & Touches Feet Ahead Of Mumbai Indians' Clash vs SunRisers Hyderabad In IPL 2024

A fan fulfilled his dream of meeting his idol and Mumbai Indians skipper Hardik Pandya after the squad arrived for IPL 2024 match against SunRisers Hyderabad in Hyderabad on Monday night, March 26.

Pandya has been under severe criticism following Mumbai Indians' defeat in their opening match against Gujarat Titans in Ahmedabad. Over the last couple of months, the 30-year-old has been facing backlash from MI fans for replacing Rohit Sharma as a captain.

However, there are fans who admire and idolize Hardik Pandya. A fan named Durgesh Tiwari shared a video on his X handle (formerly Twitter), where he can be seen meeting the Mumbai Indians captain, showed his tattoo and touched his feet before clicking with the star all-rounder.

Hardik Pandya served two seasons with Gujarat Titans as a captain and led the team to first IPL triumph in his maiden season in 2022. Ahead of IPL 2024 Auction, Pandya returned to old franchise through an all-cash trade deal of INR 15 crore by Gujarat Titans.

Just few weeks after returning to Mumbai Indians, Hardik Pandya appointed as captain ahead of IPL 2024. This sparked outrage among MI fans who questioned the Mumbai-based franchise for sacking Rohit Sharma from leadership role despite leading the team to joint-record five IPL titles.

However, Hardik Pandya returning to Mumbai Indians was a homecoming as it where he had started his Indian Premier League (IPL) journey and emerged as one of the formidable all-rounders. Hardik's first stint with Mumbai Indians began in 2015 and ended in 2021. During this period, Baroda all-rounder played an important role in helping Mumbai Indians win four IPL titles in 2015, 2017, 2019 and 2020.