Watch: Hardik Pandya hugs former Mumbai Indians captain Rohit Sharma in first meeting on field ahead of IPL 2024

Mumbai Indians' five-time IPL-winning captain Rohit Sharma joined the franchise's camp on March 20 but did not participate in the practice game.

Arun Rawal

• Wed • 20 Mar 2024

Hardik Pandya hugs Rohit Sharma at the Mumbai Indians camp (Screengrab: MI, X)

Highlights:

Rohit Sharma joined Mumbai Indians camp on March 20.

Rohit will play under Hardik Pandya's captaincy on March 24.

Mumbai Indians' (MI) new captain Hardik Pandya approached and hugged Rohit Sharma in the first meeting in a training session ahead of the Indian Premier League (IPL) 2024. There were rumours of a rift between the two and reports that Rohit was not at the team bonding exercise. The two teammates put an end to all rumours with less than 48 hours to go into the IPL 2024 season opener.

The video of Hardik and Rohit reuniting at the MI camp has made rounds on social media -

Earlier this week, Hardik revealed that he did not get a chance to have a one-on-one conversation with Rohit and said that it would not be awkward to captain a side that features the Indian skipper.

"I haven't got a lot of time to talk with Rohit because he has been touring. I will definitely catch up when he links up with the team," said Hardik.

"It won't be any different. He will be helping me when I need it. As mentioned, he is the Indian captain and I've played my whole career under him. So, I don't feel it would be awkward," the all-rounder added when asked about captaining Rohit.

After Hardik's transfer was completed and he was announced captain, there was a backlash from the franchise's fans. Hardik was on the receiving end as well. However, the 30-year-old is not bothered by it and wants to focus on the game.

"I respect the fans' emotions but I can only control the controllable. I respect them but I will focus on what I can be doing." said Hardik.

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Rohit’s IPL captaincy record

Rohit has lifted the IPL trophy five times as IPL captain. He is the second-most experienced captain in the history of IPL. He has led the Mumbai-based franchise in 158 games. Under his leadership, MI have won 87 games.

Pandya’s IPL captaincy record

Pandya has a good captaincy record leading GT to the IPL title in their maiden season. In the previous edition, he led GT to the final where they lost to MS Dhoni's Chennai Super Kings. He has led GT to victory in 22 games out of 31.