NEW DELHI: Although
Hardik Pandya
's captaincy has faced criticism for some questionable decisions, South African pacer
Gerald Coetzee
, who made his IPL debut for Mumbai Indians, praised Pandya as an "exceptional" leader.
Pandya's first time as captain of the Mumbai Indians, replacing the successful
Rohit Sharma
, turned into a challenging experience as the five-time champion franchise failed to make it to the playoffs.
MI fans were displeased with the team's decision to appoint Pandya, who had previously led a young Gujarat Titans team to back-to-back IPL finals and won the inaugural edition, and he faced boos at every game.
"I think he's been a really good captain. Every captain has a unique style and no captain is the same. He's (Hardik) been really good, he's been really motivational to the guys, he's been really clear with the plans, I think he's an exceptional captain," Coetzee said.
"I think the mood in the dressing room has been really good. We've done our best every game, we've prepared well. We've made some mistakes and sometimes we've been outplayed.
"It's still really good. And we've got strong leaders, we've got really good players. I think there's not much to look into that. I think it's been in a good mood consistently, right throughout," he added.
Mumbai Indians were the first team to be eliminated from playoff contention this season.
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