The Real Reason Behind Hardik Pandya’s Captaincy: Mumbai Indians’ Revelation

Hardik Pandya will succeed Rohit Sharma as captain of the 2024 Indian Premier League, the Mumbai Indians announced over two months ago. Rohit Sharma had an incredible captaincy during those time. The MI fan base, as was to be expected, did not agree with the decision and stood with Rohit, demanding his return. Disregarding public sentiment, though, the choice to name Hardik captain was taken with MI’s transition in mind. In fact, an incentive to become captain was part of the arrangement that led the India all-rounder to return to MI after he helped the Gujarat Titans win two straight IPL titles. There was, therefore, no turning back.

The true reason for the call was disclosed by MI coach Mark Boucher for the first time since the guard switch. The former South Africa wicketkeeper batsman made note of the fact that Hardik was named captain in order to relieve some of the pressure on Rohit, who hasn’t played well in the previous two IPL seasons. Even though Rohit has led India to victory in all three formats, Boucher believes the team needed to consider the wider picture.

“I think that was merely a cricket-related judgment. There was a chance to watch Hardik get back on the field. It’s a transitional period for me. Many people in India are unaware that although people there can be quite emotional, you can remove those feelings from the situation. I believe the choice was made more from a cricket perspective, and I do believe it will bring out the best in both Rohit the player and the person. Mark Boucher stated on the Smash Sports podcast, “Just let him go out and enjoy and score some good runs.”

“I did notice one thing about Ro (Rohit): he is an incredible dude. He has been captaining the Mumbai Indians for a very long time, and he has performed admirably. He is now the leader of India as well. He enters a place where there are just cameras, and he is quite busy. Although he hasn’t played well at the bat in a few seasons, he has performed admirably as a captain.]

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Rohit Sharma’s form played a role

The greatest IPL captain of all time is Rohit. Although Rohit has five IPL titles to MS Dhoni’s five, Rohit is the greatest of all time because he did so in fewer seasons. That being said, Rohit’s form was being affected by the expectation that MI was under to win titles like they used to every other year—they haven’t done so since 2020. His worst-ever IPL season, MI missed the playoffs and he scored only 268 runs from 14 matches in the 2022 edition of the Indian Premier League. Even though Rohit exceeded his results from 16 games last year with 332, MI was still far from their free-flowing best. The culmination of these elements cost MI the leadership of their most important franchise member.

“I just believed that perhaps this is his chance to make a move as a player, while we were talking to the entire Mumbai Indians group. We think he can bring a lot of value and just enjoy the game without the attention that comes with being a captain,” Boucher remarked. “He will still lead India as captain, so there will be excitement, but when he plays in the IPL, perhaps the strain of leading the team will be lessened and we will see the best of Rohit Sharma. We hope to see him having fun and enjoying some time with his lovely family while grinning.”