'Don't Think Him as Captain is a Finished Product Yet': Former Cricketer on Hardik Pandya's New Role as MI Skipper – News18

After Hardik Pandya was announced as the new captain of the Mumbai Indians, a former Indian cricketer shared his views on the move from the Mumbai franchise ahead of the upcoming IPL auctions which are set to take place on December 19, 2023, in Dubai.

Pandya will now take over the role of captain from Rohit Sharma who has led the franchise since 2013. Rohit had made the switch from the now-defunct franchise Deccan Chargers to the Mumbai Indians and went on to become the most successful IPL captain, winning five titles.

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Aakash Chopra spoke on his daily sports show ‘#AAKASHVANI’ on JioCinema regarding the move to make Pandya as the skipper of the MI franchise. He said,” Rohit would have also been briefed about Mumbai Indians’ future plans. I feel Ashish Nehra had a tremendous role in making Hardik the captain he was at Gujarat Titans. So, Mumbai’s job is cut out. They have to provide inputs at a different level for Hardik to replicate them on the field because I don’t think Hardik, as a captain, is a finished product yet.”

Hardik made the switch to return to his former side in an all-cash deal where the Gujarat Titans had received 15 crores to let go of the player.

The all-rounder was part of the GT since the side was formed back in 2021 and was appointed as the captain there as well. He led the Titans franchise to consecutive finals in the previous two seasons of the IPL of which he managed to win the title in the side’s debut season. He then led the side to the final once again but was defeated by the Chennai Super Kings in IPL 2023.

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Hardik so far has won a total of five IPL titles, four of which came during his first stint with the Mumbai Indians and his latest coming with the Gujarat Titans. He will look to bring the title back to Mumbai once again, this time as the captain of the franchise after making a sensational return