'Jo chingaari ki zarurat thi, vo lag chuki hai," Harbhajan Singh's sensational statement on Mumbai Indians removing Rohit Sharma from captaincy for Hardik Pandya

Mumbai Indians' newly-appointed captain Hardik Pandya and former skipper Rohit Sharma shared a hug during the team's practice session on March 20 (Wednesday). The video instantly went viral on the internet. Whether the embrace between Hardik and Rohit was a warm one or an awkward one is up for debate, but things are bound to unravel once the five-time champions begin their Indian Premier League (IPL) 2024 season.

While Hardik spoke about taking the leadership baton from Rohit in the pre-season press conference, the Hitman hasn't yet spoken a word on the captaincy transition.

Harbhajan Singh shocked by Mumbai Indians' decision

Former India and Mumbai Indians star, Harbhajan Singh weighed in on the burning subject and opined that the franchise's decision to remove Rohit from captaincy was 'shocking'. Harbhajan underlined the importance of unity within the team if it wants to challenge for another IPL title.

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"We hope that MI play as a unit, because if they do that, it would be difficult to stop them. For Hardik, and for the management, the big challenge is to unify the team. As much as I know Rohit Sharma, he's a very simple guy. He will never talk about this decision publicly. But one thing is certain, a five-time champion, and the guy who almost won the World Cup... it is shocking," Harbhajan said on his YouTube channel.

"Maybe, this decision could have been delayed by an year. Ability wise, Hardik Pandya is well capable. But the team will only win if it is unified. That's the biggest challenge for MI," he added.

Harbhajan feels Rohit is anguished

Furthermore, Harbhajan went on to claim that Rohit will not publicly talk about the captaincy transition but there might be some anguish inside of the Hitman.

"There has been no statement from Rohit Sharma on this entire saga. He's a quiet person, he will just move on from this. I think he will give his best shot, and support Hardik and the team. On the inside, there might be some anguish. Maybe, this will be Rohit Sharma's best season in IPL. Because sometimes, you have to show that you are still pretty capable. Jo chingaari ki zarurat thi, vo lag chuki hai. Ab aag me kaise convert karenge, vo dekhna hai (The spark is there, he just have to start the fire)," he added.

Mumbai Indians will begin their IPL 2024 campaign against the Gujarat Titans on March 24.

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