Mumbai Indians Wish Ritika Sajdeh On Birthday. But Fans' Reaction Is Only On Rohit Sharma's Captaincy

21.12.2023 - 09:20 sports.ndtv.com

India skipper Rohit Sharma's wife, Ritika Sajdeh is celebrating her 36th birthday today. To wish their former skipper's wife, IPL franchise Mumbai Indians took to Instagram and shared a birthday post for her.

However, the post did not go down well with MI supporters as they bombarded the comment section, expressing their anger at the removal of Rohit as the captain for the upcoming season.

Rohit, who led Mumbai Indians to the IPL title five times, was replaced by all-rounder Hardik Pandya as the captain. Taking to Instagram, MI shared a picture of Rohit and Ritika and wished the latter on her birthday.

MI wrote, "Always our Number 1 supporter. Happy Birthday, Ritika! Have a good one." A post shared by Mumbai Indians (@mumbaiindians) However, many fans showed solidarity towards Rohit and expressed their anger in the comments section.

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Former West Indies captain and current Mumbai Indians batting coach Kieron Pollard left the social media world in a frenzy with a cryptic post on Instagram. In the post, Pollard spoke about 'loyalty', leaving fans wondering what the statement could be in connection to. Some fans were quick to link the post to Mumbai Indians' decision to replace captain Rohit Sharma with Hardik Pandya, suggesting Pollard's post could be in connection with what happened at the IPL franchise.

"Made Mistakes In...": Rohit Sharma Faces Criticism Over Poor Captaincy On South Africa Tour

After the completion of the India vs South Africa series on Thursday, former India cricketer Sanjay Manjrekar pointed out skipper Rohit Sharma's mistakes while leading the visitors and said that once one loses a moment, then they lose the game. While speaking to ESPNcricinfo, Manjrekar said that the 36-year-old skipper made mistakes in both Tests. He added that it cost the visitors during the first Test match. "In Test cricket if you lose moments, you lose the game. Rohit made mistakes in both Tests and while it cost us massively in the first game, thankfully Siraj had given allowance for the second Test. Siraj bowling just one over when Markram was scoring and the lead swelled to 60 was a mistake," Manjrekar told ESPNcricinfo.

"It Is Dangerous...": Fuming Rohit Sharma Wants Indian Pitch Critics 'To Keep Mouths Shut' After 2-Day India vs South Africa Test

A two-day Test is bound to generate a lot of question marks. The same is happening with the India vs South Africa second Test that ended in less than five sessions on Thursday. As many as 23 wickets tumbled on day one with the hosts being bowled out for 55 and the visitors for 153 before India lost three more wickets in their second innings. In the second session of the second day, India completed the task in 12 overs. Only 107 overs were bowled - making it the shortest Test match ever.

Only 2nd Time In History! Rohit Sharma Eyes Elusive Feat Achieved By Only MS Dhoni

Rohit Sharma will be looking to become just the second Indian cricket team skipper ever after MS Dhoni to draw a Test series in South Africa as the two teams face each other on Wednesday. India's hopes of winning a maiden Test series in South Africa were dashed after a humiliating defeat in the first Test. However, a win in the second Test will mean that Rohit will be able to achieve a feat that has happened just once in the last eight occasions. Under Dhoni's captaincy, the Test series between India and South Africa in 2010-11 ended 1-1 between the two sides. Besides 2010-11, India ended up losing the Test series in 1992-93, 1996-97, 2001-02, 2006-07, 2013, 2018, and 2021-22.

No Virat Kohli, Rohit Sharma And Mohammed Shami In Harsha Bhogle's Test Team Of 2023. Only 2 Indians Find Place

Team India's had a mixed bag of results in Test cricket in 2023. The Rohit Sharma-led side played the final game of the year in the longest format of the game against South Africa, losing by an innings and 32 runs. India won Test series against Australia and West Indies, but lost the World Test Championship (WTC) final to the Pat Cummins-led side. In terms of individual performances, star batter Virat Kohli was the team's top-scorer with 671 runs in 12 innings at an average of 55.91. Following his knock of 76 in the second innings of the first Test against South Africa, Kohli ended the year with two centuries and as many half-centuries to his name.

"Intra-Squad Is A Joke": Sunil Gavaskar Rips Into Rohit Sharma-Led Indian Cricket Team

Team India's humiliating 3-day loss in the first Test against South Africa sent shockwaves across the cricketing spectrum. Multiple greats of the game and pundits questioned the team's preapredness for the tour, with the legendary Sunil Gavaskar highlighting the absence of practice matches as one of the biggest reasons behind the result embarrasing result. Gavaskar even called India's intra-squad matches a 'joke' as he lambasted Rohit Sharma and the team management's decision to not play First Class practice matches before the start of the 2-match series.