Former India spinner Ravichandran Ashwin has stepped up in defence of Mumbai Indians captain Hardik Pandya, arguing that the blame for the franchise's dismal IPL 2026 campaign cannot rest on one man's shoulders. MI, who have won just four of 12 matches this season, became the second team eliminated from playoff contention.

Ashwin's Core Argument

'I wouldn't review his captaincy this year at all. Honestly, when you have seasons like this, to pin the blame on the captain is quite unfair. Nobody has turned up. The team has failed to turn up and for Hardik to take the blame on himself is... you're asking him to do a little too much,' Ashwin said in an interview with ESPNcricinfo.

Ashwin drew a clear line between individual captaincy decisions and collective team failure, adding, 'Captaincy is the result of how your team is making you look. So which is why I believe when you have a good season, don't give too much credit to a captain. When you have a bad season, don't pin it on him.'

Pandya's Track Record and the Weight of Replacing Rohit

Ashwin contextualised Pandya's situation by pointing to his record with the Gujarat Titans, where he delivered one title and one runners-up finish across two seasons before returning to Mumbai Indians in 2024. 'So clearly, as a leader, he did something right there,' Ashwin noted.

He also acknowledged the unique social pressure Pandya faces: replacing Rohit Sharma — a five-time IPL-winning captain and T20 World Cup winner — was never going to be straightforward. 'You've got a lot of fandom going around in the country. You should have a thick skin to survive the social media these days,' Ashwin said.

Bowling Woes and Collective Failure

Ashwin was equally pointed about the team's bowling performance. 'The bowling has also leaked (runs in) every direction. Every single time an over is bowled for six or seven runs, in comes a 15-run over. So what do you do as a captain?' he said, suggesting that debatable tactical calls cannot be separated from the execution failures that preceded them.

The broader squad has struggled in tandem. Stars including Suryakumar Yadav and Jasprit Bumrah have had similarly modest campaigns. Pandya has also been sidelined by a reported back issue, missing three matches, with Suryakumar and Bumrah serving as stand-in captains in his absence.

Concerns About Pandya's Batting Form

Beyond the captaincy debate, Ashwin flagged a specific technical concern about Pandya's batting. 'With his batting, I found something quite interesting and strange, which is how late he's been on the ball. Is he going through something physically?' he said.

In IPL 2026, Pandya scored just 146 runs from eight innings at a strike rate of 136.44, with a best of 40, and claimed only four wickets at an economy of 11.90. Ashwin pointed specifically to his struggles against hard-length deliveries: 'He's not someone who's going to miss hard-length deliveries. He hits it 15 rows back. That's a bit of a concern for me, whether he's suffering something physically from a back issue or hands, or does he have a tennis elbow?'

Ashwin Reaffirms Pandya's Long-Term Value

'Hardik is a once-in-a-generation player. You don't find such players. And if India finds itself in a certain T20 mastery now, Hardik's been a linchpin in that,' Ashwin said, drawing a distinction between a difficult season and a player's enduring worth. He added that a poor IPL campaign, especially following a T20 World Cup triumph, is 'digestible.'

With the IPL season effectively over for Mumbai Indians, all eyes will now turn to whether Pandya's reported physical concerns are addressed ahead of India's next international assignments.