(Image Source: ‘X’ – Mumbai Indians)
[Saba Sports News] In a surprising turn of events, the Mumbai Indians (MI), renowned as one of the Indian Premier League’s (IPL) most successful teams, have unexpectedly decided to appoint Hardik Pandya as their new captain, replacing Rohit Sharma for the next season. Rohit has been a pivotal figure since 2013, guiding MI to five IPL championships, a record he shares with MS Dhoni for the most titles won by a captain.
Rohit’s impressive IPL career includes scoring 6211 runs, with one century and 42 fifties, placing him fourth among the league’s top run-scorers. Following this captaincy shift, MI honored Rohit, their all-time leading scorer, with a touching social media tribute.
“Ro, In 2013 you took over as captain of MI. You asked us to 𝐁𝐞𝐥𝐢𝐞𝐯𝐞. In victories & defeats, you asked us to 𝘚𝘮𝘪𝘭𝘦. 10 years & 6 trophies later, here we are. Our 𝐟𝐨𝐫𝐞𝐯𝐞𝐫 𝐜𝐚𝐩𝐭𝐚𝐢𝐧, your legacy will be etched in Blue & Gold. Thank you, 𝐂𝐚𝐩𝐭𝐚𝐢𝐧 𝐑𝐎,” the franchise captioned the post on ‘X’.
Hardik Pandya was declared as the captain for the IPL 2024 season on December 15 by MI. This follows Hardik’s return to MI after a stint with Gujarat Titans as captain. MI highlighted this captaincy change as a strategic direction for their future.
Rohit Sharma, having recently captained India in the 2023 ICC Men’s Cricket World Cup final against Australia, is now preparing for a Test series against South Africa, part of the World Test Championship 2023-25.