Hardik Pandya, on Friday, December 15, replaced Rohit Sharma as the captain of the Mumbai Indians (MI) ahead of the Indian Premier League (IPL) 2024. Back in 2013, Rohit took over as the skipper of the franchise from Ricky Ponting and led them to their maiden title back in the same year.

From there on, the now 35-year-old Rohit did not look back and led them to four more titles in 2015, 2017, 2019, 2020, respectively.

Mahela Jayawardene, the Global Head of Performance of MI, said Hardik has been named as the skipper, keeping in mind the future of the franchise.

“It is part of legacy building and staying true to the MI philosophy of being future-ready. Mumbai Indians have always been blessed with exceptional leadership right from Sachin to Harbhajan and Ricky to Rohit, who, while contributing to the immediate success, have always had an eye on strengthening the team for the future. It is in keeping with this philosophy that Hardik Pandya will assume captaincy of Mumbai Indians for the IPL 2024 season,” Jayawardene was quoted as saying.

Hardik made a move from the MI team after the 2021 edition. In 2022, he guided Gujarat Titans to their maiden win after beating Rajasthan Royals in the final.

Hardik also won the Player of the Match award in the final at the Narendra Modi Stadium in Ahmedabad. Even in 2023, Hardik led the Titans to the final where they lost to the Chennai Super Kings (CSK).

Fans, in the meantime, weren’t happy with Hardik taking over from Rohit as the skipper of MI. They reckoned that Rohit was treated unfairly by the five-time IPL champions.