The crowd present at the Wankhede Stadium, Mumbai, erupted into ‘Hardik Hardik’ chants ahead of the felicitation ceremony of the T20 World Cup 2024 winning team. Team India reached Mumbai after winning the T20 World Cup in Barbados, on Thursday, July 4. The team was stuck in Barbados for four days after the final due to Hurricane Beryl and finally reached India in a special charter arranged by the BCCI.
After meeting Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi, Rohit Sharma and Co. travelled to Mumbai for a grand welcome. The team participated in the open-bus victory parade hosted by the BCCI followed by a felicitation ceremony at the Wankhede Stadium. Ahead of the ceremony, the stadium echoed with the chants of ‘Hardik Hardik’ lauding star all-rounder Hardik Pandya.
Notably, earlier during the IPL 2024, Pandya was brutally trolled and criticised after he took over the captaincy of Mumbai Indians from Rohit Sharma. Not only this, but MI fans booed Pandya during a few matches of the side at the Wankhede. Coming back to the cricketer, Pandya played a vital role in India’s victory in the T20 World Cup 2024.
However, his most important performance came in the final as he scalped one of the most decisive wickets for the side, Heinrich Klassen. In the finale, he went on to bowl the tensed final over and helped the side win the T20 World Cup title after 17 long years. After the assignment, he moved to the number 1 spot in ICC’s latest all-rounder standings.