3 reasons why Hardik Pandya as MI captain for IPL 2024 is the wrong move

Mumbai Indians (MI) have announced that Hardik Pandya will lead the team in the IPL 2024. The team's captain from 2013 to 2023, Rohit Sharma, will remain a vital component both on and off the field.

John Wright scouted Hardik, who began his IPL career in 2015 with MI. The all-rounder won four IPL titles in 2015, 2017, 2019 and 2020 under Rohit's captaincy.

MI retained Rohit, Jasprit Bumrah, and Suryakumar Yadav in the IPL 2022 mega auction, which meant that Hardik's stint at the Mumbai-based franchise came to an end. He was then drafted by his local side, the Gujarat Titans.

GT not only made the 30-year-old their highest-paid player but also made him their captain. He led them to two IPL finals in two seasons, winning one title in 2022. Hardik played exceedingly well for GT, particularly in the IPL 2022.

Rohit, the joint-most successful IPL captain with five IPL titles to his credit, was a sensational captain for MI. The move to make Hardik Pandya captain has taken everyone by surprise due to Rohit's extraordinary captaincy record.

Here are three reasons why Hardik Pandya, as MI captain for IPL 2024, is the wrong move:

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#1 Rohit Sharma's tenure as IPL captain ends on a bad note

Rohit Sharma is, along with MS Dhoni, the best captain in IPL history. He won five titles with MI in his first eight years as captain, establishing them as the best T20 side in the world. However, the last three years have been pretty underwhelming for MI.

They failed to qualify for the playoffs in two of the last three campaigns and even finished at the bottom of the points table in IPL 2022. Hence, it feels like a sad ending to Rohit's stint as MI captain, especially after the 2023 World Cup disappointment.

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#2 Hardik Pandya will be under too much pressure

Hardik Pandya's trade to MI from GT already caused a lot of shockwaves in the IPL fraternity, as such a big player had never been traded earlier. The pressure on him to perform well will increase even more since he is named captain now.

The fast-bowling all-rounder is also very injury-prone. He is currently on the sidelines and is expected to be fit just before the IPL. Making a player who has a history of injuries the captain of the team could backfire if he gets a knock during or before the IPL.

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#3 Senior MI players could feel hard done by

Jasprit Bumrah and Suryakumar Yadav have been MI's best players over the years. They were also retained ahead of Hardik Pandya before the last mega auction. However, now that Hardik has been traded back, he is preferred as the future captain of the team.

While they are professionals and this will not cause any rift between the players, it still shows that MI didn't consider Bumrah or Suryakumar as good captaincy options. This is not a good look, considering both of them have even led India at some point in their careers.