The suspense-filled drama surrounding Hardik Pandya’s fate in the upcoming Indian Premier League (IPL) 2024 took a decisive turn as Gujarat Titans (GT) traded their captain and star all-rounder to Mumbai Indians (MI) ahead of the auction. However, the move has stirred discussions, especially with Hardik Pandya holding the reins as India’s T20 captain but not leading his IPL franchise.
Former Indian cricketer Aakash Chopra expressed his reservations, stating, “The one thing that won’t look good on Hardik’s CV is that he left Mumbai because he wanted to become a captain. You went to Gujarat and then became the Indian captain. You will no longer be a franchise captain now but you still want to be India’s captain – it doesn’t sit right.”
Chopra, on his YouTube show, emphasized that the optics of Pandya relinquishing the franchise captaincy while aspiring to retain the T20 captaincy for India might raise eyebrows. The speculation is rife that Hardik Pandya could potentially lead Mumbai Indians in IPL 2024, although taking over the captaincy from Rohit Sharma seems improbable in the near future.
