Ace India all-rounder Hardik Pandya, who replaced Rohit Sharma as IPL franchise Mumbai Indians captain last season, suffered wrath from the fans over this shocking decision, with countless present at each venue MI played at kept booing him left, right and centre. Ahead of the 18th edition, starting March 22, Pandya opened up about the whole episode and how he felt throughout.

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With the team captain not feeling in his element, he failed to guide the side into the top four, as they finished at the bottom of the points table, with just four wins in 14 matches. Pandya performed below par that season, scoring 216 runs and picking just 11 wickets.

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However, as the irony of life had it, the same crowd welcomed him with open arms after he helped India win the T20 World Cup in the Americas two months later, with a sea of supporters surrounding Team India’s open bus parade near the Marine Drive and at the Wankhede Stadium in Mumbai.

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Opening up on the whole episode and how it made him feel, Pandya said, “It's always about when you don't leave the battlefield."

"For me, it was about surviving, maybe not winning. That year was a year where, for the longest time, I had to hold my ground, not leave the battlefield, which was the ground. I realised how everything was panning out, that cricket will be my best friend, and he will get me out of it," Pandya said during an episode of JioStar's 'Superstars'.

'No better script'

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Reflecting on how life played its part in turning the tables around, Pandya said he kept pushing, and all his hard work paid off, adding he couldn’t have written a better script.

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"Yeah, it kept, I kept pushing, kept pushing. And I think when all the hard work and everything came, I don't think I wouldn't be able to write a script, which it turned out to be in my life. 

“That six months of my phase, where winning the World Cup, and coming back and getting the kind of love we got. I think it was a complete 360-degree turnaround for me. And I think cricket was something which I knew that if I be persistent if I be honest with my work, if I be really hardworking, I think I'll be able to come out of this. But when I didn't know, as exactly said, it was written in the script by the God where it turned out to be two and a half months," he added.

Meanwhile, Pandya will be leading the Mumbai Indians side this season, where they face Chennai Super Kings (CSK) in the marquee clash on Sunday evening. 

(With inputs from agencies)