'I don't want to talk about him; he shouldn't even be in this team': Ex-BCCI selector destroys Manish Pandey on live TV

The Delhi Capitals finally got off the mark on the IPL 2023 points table but it wasn’t before they huffed and puffed their way to a victory over Kolkata Knight Riders on Thursday. Chasing a modest 121 for victory, the Capitals almost made a meal of the target getting over the line in 19.2 overs with Axar Patel ensuring DC’s four-wicket-win. It’s safe to say that although Delhi picked up their first win of the season, frailties remain. The collective failures of their batters need to be addressed by captain David Warner, coach Ricky Ponting and director of cricket Sourav Ganguly before it gets too late.

The frustrations with the Capitals have crept in the minds of not only the fans but also former cricketers. So much so, that during a discussion on the Star Sports Cricket Live show, former BCCI chairman Krishnamachari Srikkanth simply refused to answer a question about Manish Pandey. When renowned broadcaster and Australian TV presenter Neroli Meadows asked Srikkanth what he thought about Pandey and whether he should bat up the order for DC, the former India batter simply behaved as if the question wasn't even asked.

Meadows: Chikka, a word about Manish Pandey. He hasn’t quite been able to… (gets interrupted)

Srikkanth: Why are we talking about Manish Pandey? I don’t want to talk about him. The guy shouldn’t even be in the team. Let’s talk about Axar Patel, how he has been in the form of his life and deserves to bat higher.

Meadows: Well, Chikka seems to be pretty clear that he doesn’t want to talk about Manish Pandey.

Srikkanth: No, I don’t want to talk about him. He shouldn’t be in this team. If I was the chairman of selectors, he wouldn't have played.

With the discussion seemingly taking an awkward turn, Sanjay Manjrekar took control of the situation and spoke about Pandey, explaining how the 33-year-old has had more misses than hits. Pandey was the first Indian to score an IPL century way back in 2009, and over the years even earned an India call-up, but was never able to justify his talent. Even in the IPL, Pandey hasn’t been able to stick with one franchise and has played for seven different teams – Mumbai Indians, Royal Challengers Bangalore, Pune Warriors India, Kolkata Knight Riders, Sunrisers Hyderabad, Lucknow Super Giants last year and now Delhi Capitals.

Pandey has enjoyed one two 400-plus seasons but has mostly blown hot and cold. This season, he has scored 97 runs from four matches including a half-century against RCB. Last year too, Pandey played just 6 games for LSG scoring 88 runs.