NEW DELHI:
Virat Kohli
earned praise for his act of stepping in to support
Hardik Pandya
, encouraging the crowd to cheer for the Mumbai Indians skipper instead of booing him.
Former India stars
Virender Sehwag
and
Harbhajan Singh
commended Kohli's gesture, highlighting it as a display of true sportsmanship and a hallmark of a great player.
"The way Virat Kohli supported Hardik Pandya and told the crowd not to boo Hardik & cheer for him, it is a sign of a great player & a very very good sportsman," Harbhajan said on Star Sports.
"Virat Kohli's gesture was very nice for Hardik Pandya. He asked the Wankhede crowd to cheer for Hardik and not to boo him. That was a wonderful gesture from Virat," Sehwag said on Jio Cinema.
Pandya found himself again at the centre of a backlash from fans during the clash against Royal Challengers Bengaluru at Wankhede Stadium on Thursday.
Number of times, Hardik's teammates, players from the opposition and commentators have frequently come to his defence, urging the crowd to show him the respect he deserves.
In a match where partisan crowds passionately cheered for Indian stars Rohit Sharma and Kohli, there were intermittent moments of booing directed at MI skipper Pandya.
However, as Pandya walked out to bat, amidst the boos, a section of the crowd began chanting 'Hardik... Hardik', with Kohli promptly encouraging fans to support the Indian all-rounder.
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