“Can cost you a place in the playoffs” - Indian legend’s brutal attack on Hardik Pandya after MI vs GT IPL 2025 match

Former Indian opener Sunil Gavaskar slammed Mumbai Indians (MI) skipper Hardik Pandya for not bowling the final over in their heartbreaking loss to the Gujarat Titans (GT) at the Wankhede Stadium on Tuesday, May 6. Chasing 156 for victory, GT stuttered to 132/6 in 18 overs when rain stopped play.

Upon resumption, GT's target got reduced to 147 off 19 overs, leaving them needing 15 off the final over. Hardik preferred veteran pacer Deepak Chahar over himself for the over, and the move proved costly.

Chahar conceded a boundary and a maximum, followed by a no-ball, as GT completed the task off the last ball. The gut-wrenching defeat left MI in a precarious position in the playoff race.

Reflecting on Hardik's decision not to bowl himself in the final over, Gavaskar told JioStar (via India Today):

"I think the fact that they took their time with the over - so they had to penalise one field. So these things are things that can come in and, you know, cost you a place in the playoffs. And that is the reason why I think Mumbai Indians really have to sit down and talk about that."

He continued:

"As I explained earlier, because of the fact that he had bowled those final overs - and bowled them very well - he bowled over against Bangladesh where, I mean, we got 3 wickets, Bangladesh had to score 4 or 5, and India managed to win that game by 1. And then in the final of the ICC T20 World Cup last year in the West Indies, in Barbados, he bowled that final over and India win."

"I would have thought that - because, let's face it, also, you know, in commentary we heard that Deepak Chahar really hasn't bowled in the final 5 overs. This is probably, you know, one of those rare occasions, so he, you know, he's not used to bowling in the final overs. So I think that is where the game could have changed."

The loss broke MI's six-match winning streak, leaving them fourth on the standings with seven wins in 12 games.

"We were short by 20-25 runs" - Hardik Pandya on MI's defeat to GT

Hardik Pandya blamed MI's batting and the costly no-balls with the ball for their last-ball defeat to GT. The home side collapsed from a solid 97/2 in 10.4 overs to 123/7 in the 17th over before a few lusty blows in the end took them to a respectable 155/8 in 20 overs.

The skipper had a poor outing, scoring only a run with the bat and bowling two no-balls in his lone over.

Talking about the loss at the post-match presentation, Hardik said (via ESPN Cricinfo):

"Fought well with the total we had. Times where we were out of the game, but we pushed as a group. It was a game of margins. It was definitely not a 150-wicket. It was a 175-wicket, we were short by 20-25 runs. Catches did not really cost us, but the no balls, with my no balls and even in the last over, in T20s, it is a crime and more often than not, it bites you."

MI will likely have to win their final two league stage matches to remain in playoff contention. They will take on the Punjab Kings (PBKS) at Dharamsala on May 11.