Hardik Pandya Called To Hand Over Mumbai Indians Captaincy To Rohit Sharma

Hardik Pandya called to leave MI captaincy [Source: AFP]

Mumbai Indians sustained their lean patch in IPL 2026, as Punjab Kings steamrolled them by seven wickets in the 24th group-stage match of the tournament. Led by Hardik Pandya, the Mumbai Indians thus registered their fourth defeat in the first five matches of the competition. 

Batting first, MI posted a respectable total of 195 runs, riding on a sublime century from Quinton de Kock. In response, the Kings hunted down the target inside 17 overs, with Prabhsimran Singh and Shreyas Iyer playing scintillating knocks. 

Although MI were far from their best with the ball, captain Hardik Pandya received massive backlash for some of his on-field decisions during the game. 

In fact, one of India's former cricketers urged him to hand over the captaincy to Rohit Sharma, who is inarguably one of the finest white-ball captains. 

Hardik Pandya's decision that proved costly for Mumbai Indians vs PBKS

After Shreyas Iyer won the toss and invited MI to bat first, Arshdeep Singh bowled brilliantly with the new ball to send Ryan Rickelton and Suryakumar Yadav packing in quick succession. 

However, Quinton de Kock and Naman Dhir steadied the ship, forming a magnificent third-wicket stand for the five-time champions. Their 122-run partnership set the foundation for a mammoth total. 

Replacing Rohit Sharma in the playing XI, De Kock smashed a blistering century on his maiden IPL 2026 outing. 

But when Naman Dhir got out in the 14th over, Hardik Pandya came out to bat as the finisher instead of sending in-form Sherfane Rutherford into the middle. 

Notably, Rutherford had hammered 71 runs off just 31 balls against RCB and could've ensured a fitting finish for the team. 

On the other hand, Pandya was far from his best against Punjab Kings, scoring 14 runs off 12 deliveries before his dismissal. 

Also Read: "Good Toss To Lose"- Hardik Pandya Makes Baffling Brain-Fade Comment vs PBKS

Thus, his decision to promote himself over the explosive West Indies batter proved costly for Mumbai Indians, restricting them to 195, although a 200-plus total seemed like a cake walk for them at one stage. 

Manoj Tiwary slams Hardik Pandya for bizarre decisions Vs Punjab Kings

After Shreyas Iyer's Punjab Kings proved that the 196-run target was insufficient for them, former Indian cricketer Manoj Tiwary criticised Pandya for his decision to prefer himself over Rutherford at a crucial juncture of the match. 

Tiwary also reckoned that Pandya could've utilised Jasprit Bumrah more strategically, highlighting the lack of planning by the MI captain. 

Speaking on Cricbuzz, Manoj Tiwary demanded ownership from the veteran all-rounder and said, 

"From where will ownership come? According to me, just because you are not having success this year doesn't mean the mistakes happened only this year. You need to look at the root cause as well. From 2015-2023, Rohit Sharma helped the Mumbai Indians win several trophies. In 2023, there was no trophy. In 2024, there was no trophy, and the chances of the same happening are high this year too. I think the captaincy is weak."

“Hardik shouldn't have promoted himself against the Punjab Kings. He scored 14 runs off 12 balls. Sherfane Rutherford just got five balls. If Rutherford had played as many balls, he would have hit 3-4 sixes. You should have pushed Rutherford up. And secondly, there is no point in giving Jasprit Bumrah the second over when you are not giving him the first," Tiwary added. 

Manoj Tiwary urges Hardik Pandya to hand over captaincy duties to Rohit Sharma

Addressing the loopholes in Pandya's captaincy, Manoj Tiwary further urged Hardik Pandya to step down and hand over the reins to his predecessor, Rohit Sharma. 

"Shreyas Iyer showed outstanding captaincy, whereas Mumbai Indians' captaincy was very weak. I think that if a solution is needed, Hardik should step back from the captaincy and hand the responsibility back to Rohit," Tiway said. 

Notably, Rohit Sharma is the most successful captain in IPL history, having led Mumbai Indians to five titles. Under his leadership, MI won the coveted trophy in 2013, 2015, 2017, 2019 and 2020. 

Statistically, Rohit Sharma has led MI to 91 wins in 163 matches, registering an impressive win percentage of 55.82. 

However, as he entered the twilight of his career, the MI management decided to trade Pandya from Gujarat Titans and appoint him as the skipper. 

Although Pandya led Gujarat Titans to their maiden IPL title in 2022, his performance as Mumbai Indians captain has been far from ideal, with the team losing 19 of 33 matches in his tenure. 

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