After leading the Mumbai Indians over ten exhilarating seasons, Rohit Sharma will hand the captaincy to Hardik Pandya in the 2024 Indian Premier League. Along with MS Dhoni of the Chennai Super Kings, Rohit led Mumbai to five IPL championships and is the tournament’s all-time leading captain.
Less than a month has passed since Mumbai signed Hardik back to his previous team after he led the Gujarat Titans to consecutive titles and a runners-up position.
Although some may be surprised by the event, Mumbai had a well-thought-out plan when they transferred Hardik to the Titans. The team had decided that Hardik would be Rohit’s replacement and wanted to make sure the changeover went as smoothly as possible, recalling the time when Sachin Tendulkar, Harbhajan Singh, Ricky Ponting, and Rohit all shared the captaincy.
It is believed that Rohit will carry on for Mumbai in the Indian Premier League.
Mumbai’s global head of performance, Mahela Jayawardene, stated in a statement that “it is part of legacy building and staying true to the MI philosophy of being future-ready.” “The Mumbai Indians have always had outstanding leadership, from Sachin to Harbhajan and Ricky to Rohit, who have all worked to build the squad for the future while also contributing to the club’s immediate success. For the 2024 Indian Premier League season, Hardik Pandya will lead the Mumbai Indians as captain, adhering to this philosophy.
“We would like to thank Rohit Sharma for his outstanding leadership; since 2013, he has led the Mumbai Indians in a manner that is truly remarkable. In addition to bringing the club unmatched success, his leadership has cemented his status as one of the best captains in IPL history.
“MI became one of the most popular and successful teams in history with his leadership. To further enhance MI, we will welcome his advice and experience both on and off the field. We extend our warmest greetings and best wishes to Hardik Pandya, the new MI captain.”
Throughout the Champions League T20 and IPL, Rohit captained Mumbai 163 times. He won 91 games, tied four, and lost 68. Mumbai advanced to the five IPL finals under his leadership, winning them all in 2013, 2015, 2017, 2019, and 2020. However, Mumbai has had less success in the last three seasons. They were eliminated from the 2023 tournament after losing to Titans in the second qualifying round, and they missed out on the playoffs in 2021 and 2022.
Whether the Mumbai captaincy change heralds a similar change in the Indian T20I team is yet to be determined. India’s all-around skipper at the moment, Rohit, hasn’t participated in a Twenty20 international match since the team lost in the semifinals of the 2022 T20 World Cup in Australia. During that period, Hardik has led India in 13 of their previous 25 Twenty20 Internationals as captain. However, he is presently sidelined due to an ankle injury he suffered during the most recent ODI World Cup. Another Mumbai Indians player, Suryakumar Yadav, led India in the just-finished Twenty20 International series in South Africa.
