GT vs MI: 'A Rare Happening': Commentator Shocked as Hardik Pandya 'booed' by Gujarat Titans Fans on his Ahmedabad Return

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Hardik Pandya's return to Ahmedabad was an unceremonious one as the crowd booed the Mumbai Indians captain on Sunday (March 24).

Hardik Pandya switched from Gujarat Titans to Mumbai Indians ahead of the IPL 2024 and has been appointed as the new Mumbai captain. The Paltans are playing their first match against Titans in Ahmedabad, and the former Titans captain Pandya was not welcomed by the fans as he wore the Mumbai Blues.

He was vehemently booed by the fans, who showed their back to the player every time he went near the ball.

The crowd at the Narendra Modi Stadium was also shouting 'Rohit, Rohit' during the match. As Pandya won the toss, the crowd continued jeering at him and the no lovelost was quite vivid.

Even the commentators discussed the way the Ahmedabad crowd reacted to Pandya. Former England player Kevin Pietersen said it is a rare occurrence in India, and he was right to say that. Booing a player is mostly a foreign thing and it generally happens more in European Football.

"I have never seen any Indian player getting booed like they are booing Hardik Pandya here in Ahmedabad. This is a rare happening," Pietersen said live on air.

Hardik Pandya won an IPL title in Gujarat Titans' maiden IPL season in 2022. He also took them to the Final last year but they fell short in the championship clash against Chennai Super Kings. After two decent seasons, his sudden move to Mumbai Indians was unprecedented and is not clearly a popular one among the Titans faithful.

Although the reception was not kind, Hardik credited his birthplace and the people of Gujarat during the Toss.

"Feels good to be back. My birthplace is Gujarat, a lot of success came in Gujarat, very grateful to the crowd and this state. My cricketing birth happened in Mumbai, so really good to be be back," Pandya said.