"It's not a magic wand that Shakalaka Boomboom and we won the trophy"- Hardik Pandya on expectations at MI in IPL 2024

Mumbai Indians (MI) captain Hardik Pandya understands the level of expectations that the five-time IPL winners have every season and is aware that despite being a newly appointed skipper, he will need to deliver results almost immediately.

However, the all-rounder shed light on the importance of focusing on the process and ensuring that players are on the same page. He also opened up on how he intends to make it a tightly-knit group so the players play for each other.

Speaking to the reporters in the pre-season press conference, here's what Hardik Pandya had to say about the expectations using an analogy from a fictional show:

"It takes time. It takes process. It's not a magic wand that Shakalaka Boomboom and we won the trophy. It takes time, and caring for each other. If we can get all of this together, I feel we can crack it and try to achieve something that you all want."

Hardik is also looking forward to working with batting coach Kieron Pollard and fast bowling coach Lasith Malinga, having been teammates with them in his previous MI stint. He added:

"When I played with both of them, I shared a great bond and now one being bowling coach and one being batting coach, it is a very happy surprise. Poeple whom I loved playing with are here and Mark's been fantastic from his standpoint."

Hardik already has results to show for his prowess as a captain as he won the IPL two years ago with the Gujarat Titans. He led them to another final last year, but narrowly missed out as they lost to Chennai Super Kings in a last-ball thriller.

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Hardik Pandya hints at his role with MI

Hardik Pandya hinted that he could return to the finisher's role that he played at MI during his first stint from 2015 to 2021. He had been batting in the top four for the Gujarat Titans but felt that the role of finishing came naturally to him.

On this, Hardik stated:

"I am back to what I have done throughout my career (on his role) I am looking forward to doing that and I hope I do justice to all expectations that people have. I will try to finish as many games as possible and I ll down there and enjoy the position which I have always loved."

Hardik Pandya could combine with the likes of Suryakumar Yadav, Tilak Varma and Tim David to form a power-packed MI middle order and be the engine room for their success with the bat.