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Mumbai Indians' (MI) start to the Indian Premier League (IPL) 2024 season has been rough, with three consecutive losses under their new captain Hardik Pandya. MI's back-to-back defeats have sparked discussions about a potential leadership change. Meanwhile, former Indian batsman Manoj Tiwary, in a big claim, said that the MI captaincy could be handed back to Rohit Sharma midway through the IPL 2024. This comes after Mumbai traded for Pandya, who led Gujarat Titans to an IPL title in 2022 and a finals appearance in 2023. However, Pandya hasn't been able to replicate that success with MI so far.
Tiwary's comments came after MI's six-wicket defeat against Sanju Samson-led Rajasthan Royals (RR) in their IPL 2024 clash at the Wankhede stadium on April 1. RR restricted MI to a paltry 125 runs and chased it down comfortably with six wickets and 27 balls to spare. This loss follows defeats against Gujarat Titans (by 6 runs) and Sunrisers Hyderabad (by 31 runs) under Pandya's captaincy.
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Rohit Sharma might be seen leading Mumbai Indians again
“Mumbai's captaincy could be handed back to Rohit Sharma. What I understand is that the owners of Mumbai Indians don't hesitate in making decisions. They made the call of taking the captaincy from Rohit and giving it to Hardik Pandya despite Rohit winning five IPL titles for them,” Tiwary said during a conversation with Cricbuzz.
“Changing the captain is a very big call. They have not picked up a single point this season. And the captaincy is also all over the place, it's not just bad luck and the captaincy has been very good, that's not the case. The captaincy has not been great,” he further added.
Hardik Pandya's tenure as Mumbai Indians captain hasn't gotten off to an ideal start. Not only has the team lost their first three matches of the 2024 IPL season, but Pandya has also faced the brunt of the crowd's disapproval. This discontent has been surprisingly widespread, with booing erupting in Ahmedabad, Hyderabad, and even Mumbai's home ground, the Wankhede Stadium.
Things reached a head during the match against Rajasthan Royals when the crowd's jeers became so loud that former captain Rohit Sharma had to intervene and urge them to stop. Despite the current struggles, Mumbai will be looking to turn things around when they face the Delhi Capitals on Sunday, April 7. Currently MI sit at the bottom of the IPL 2024 points table with three successive defeats, while RR, on the other hand, enjoy their ride to the top of the standings with three victories on the trot.
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