Mumbai Indians will have a new captain in Hardik Pandya for IPL 2024 who will be succeeding Rohit Sharma into the role.
Rohit led MI to five IPL titles, the joint-most by any captain in IPL history alongside Chennai Super Kings captain MS Dhoni.
Former India allrounder Irfan Pathan reckons that the stature enjoyed by Dhoni among his CSK fans is comparable to what Rohit means to MI.
Also Read: ‘Pandya Has Proven Himself, Rohit’s Contribution Has Become Lesser’
“The stature that Rohit Sharma has in Mumbai Indians, I think it can be compared to the stature that Dhoni has in CSK. He has made this team with his own hard work and dedication through his captaincy,” Pathan said on Stars Sports.
He pointed out how despite the absence of two of his premier bowlers in Jasprit Bumrah and Jofra Archer (for the major part of the season), Rohit guided MI into playoffs during IPL 2023.
“He’s a great captain who has carried this team for years and last year, with the team they had, many people thought they could qualify for the playoffs. They qualified, even though they didn’t have (pacer) Jofra Archer and their bowling was light. Even their form wasn’t good. They didn’t have the facilities of Bumrah (who was recovering from injury,” Pathan said.
MI pulled off one of the biggest trades in the history of IPL when they welcomed back Pandya from Gujarat Titans ahead of the mini auction.
Pandya started his IPL career with MI which saw him make his India debut before he made the switch to GT, a franchise he would lead to two finals in a row with one culminating in a memorable title win.
Pathan reckons that the biggest challenge Pandya will face is managing the likes of Suryakumar Yadav, Jasprit Bumrah and Rohit.
“Now that this decision about Hardik Pandya has been taken, I think Suryakumar Yadav was involved in this discussion, Bumrah was in it as well, so for Hardik Pandya, the biggest challenge will be with all these people — Rohit Sharma, Suryakumar Yadav, Jasprit Bumrah, who are leaders themselves, they have been captains of the Indian team in the past,” Pathan said.
“Hardik will have to learn to manage these guys and it will be his biggest challenge. And this won’t be easy for him,” he added.
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