IPL 2024: Hardik Pandya Set Condition To Return Only As Captain Of Mumbai Indians Rohit Sharma
A few weeks back in November 2023, Hardik Pandya was the hot topic in town. He returned to Mumbai Indians after leading Gujarat Titans as captain for two seasons in the Indian Premier League (IPL). Days later in December, Pandya is trending again as he replaced Rohit Sharma as the captain of the Mumbai franchise. Rohit had been the captain of MI for ten years getting them to five IPL titles. As reported by the Indian Express, Rohit was informed about the decision to bring Pandya back but it was also expressed to him that it can only happen if the star all-rounder returns as the captain of the team.
The reports suggests that Rohit was informed about the decision before the World Cup began in a series of meetings. Rohit agreed to play under Hardik. It is also reported that Pandya was clear about his return and his condition was that he will only return if MI give him the captaincy role.
In a press release on Friday, the franchise’s global head of performance Mahela Jayawardene stated, “It is part of legacy building and staying true to the MI philosophy of being future-ready.s have always been blessed with exceptional leadership right from Sachin to Harbhajan and Ricky to Rohit, who while contributing to the immediate success have always had an eye on strengthening the team for the future. It is in keeping with this philosophy that Hardik Pandya will assume captaincy of Mumbai Indians for the IPL 2024 season.”
Back in 2013, Rohit Sharma took over as captain of MI after the team had struggled under Ricky Ponting’s leadership. It was a call that led to their very first league championship. Since then, together with MS Dhoni, Rohit has guided the team to four more championships, sharing the record for most captains.