Hardik Pandya’s Redemption Continues: Historic Five-Wicket Haul Lifts Mumbai Indians Amid IPL 2025 Struggles:

After a tough IPL 2024 season where Mumbai Indians finished 10th and Hardik Pandya came under immense criticism, the all-rounder has begun his 2025 campaign with a statement performance. Despite MI’s sluggish start—just one win from four games—Hardik's form with the ball has been a silver lining.

He claimed career-best figures of 5/36 against the Lucknow Super Giants (LSG) on Friday. Notably, this is the first-ever five-wicket haul by a captain in IPL history, with key wickets including Nicholas Pooran, Rishabh Pant, David Miller, and Aiden Markram.

Smart Use of Variations and Bowling Strategy

Hardik’s standout performance was underpinned by clever variations, particularly his effective use of off-cutters and short-pitched deliveries. His five wickets included three from off-cutters, a tactic echoed by MI's bowling unit.

MI Seamers vs LSG – Variation Effectiveness:

Variation	Hardik Pandya	All Seamers Combined
Off-cutters	3 wickets (6 balls)	5 wickets (15 balls)
Other deliveries	2 wickets (18 balls)	2 wickets (57 balls)

Boundary Strategy and Field Positioning

MI's bowlers also capitalized on asymmetric boundary dimensions—73m on one side vs 66m on the other. Four late-order LSG batters (Markram, Samad, Miller, Akash Deep) were dismissed while trying to clear the longer boundary with mistimed shots against slower deliveries.

Hardik’s Short-Length Bowling: A Career Staple

Hardik has consistently used the short ball throughout his T20 career.

IPL Career: 47.53% of deliveries short; 38 of 72 wickets (52.77%)

Overall T20s: 49.57% short deliveries; 55.81% of wickets from them

This tactic dates back to his clutch bowling in India’s 2016 T20 World Cup win over Bangladesh.

MI Bowling Stats Shine Despite Poor Results

MI's quick bowlers have shown promise this season:

21 wickets in four games (highest among all teams)

Average: 19.14

Strike Rate: 12.5
Only Delhi Capitals have better figures in those two categories.

Importantly, these performances come in the absence of Jasprit Bumrah, indicating strong bench strength and potential for improvement as the tournament progresses.