Former India cricketer and 1983 World Cup-winner Kris Srikkanth has expressed concerns that Jasprit Bumrah's captaincy aspirations could be negatively impacted by the return of Hardik Pandya to the Mumbai Indians (MI). Srikkanth believes that Bumrah may have harbored hopes of leading the franchise in the future.
Pandya's return to MI after a two-year stint with the Gujarat Titans raises questions about the leadership hierarchy within the team. Pandya's successful leadership tenure with the Titans, culminating in their IPL 2022 title victory, further strengthens his position as a potential captaincy candidate.
Srikkanth's concerns stem from the potential for a clash of leadership aspirations between Bumrah and Pandya. Bumrah, who has established himself as a world-class bowler and a respected figure within the team, may feel his captaincy ambitions are being thwarted by Pandya's presence.
After Pandya's return to MI last week, Bumrah posted a cryptic Insta story, which read, "Silence is sometimes the best answer."
Meanwhile, Srikkanth on his Youtube channel said,"He's is the best bowler in the world currently, be it Tests or white-ball cricket, not to forget his World Cup performance. He was even the stand-in captain against England in the fifth Test last year".
"He might be regretting. It could be his ego, or he might be hurt by the fact that he stayed back at MI and gave his all, but the team is bringing back someone who had left and celebrating him. He feels it's not fair," he added.
Srikkanth also drew parallels between the current situation with Jasprit Bumrah and Hardik Pandya at Mumbai Indians (MI) and the similar situation with Ravindra Jadeja and Chennai Super Kings (CSK) a couple of seasons back. He suggested that MI might handle the Bumrah-Pandya dynamic in a similar manner to how CSK managed the Jadeja-Dhoni dynamic.
"It was the same case with Ravindra Jadeja at CSK. However, the team management and the captain (MS Dhoni) stepped in to sort out the situation.
"Similarly, I feel that the MI team management will have a sit-down with Bumrah, Pandya and Rohit (Sharma) to sort things out. Championships can only be won as a team," Srikkanth added.
The 63-year-old also acknowledged Bumrah's leadership qualities and his potential to guide MI to success. However, he emphasised the importance of addressing the concerns that may have led to Pandya's reinstatement as captain. He suggested that there may be underlying factors, such as differing leadership styles or compatibility issues, that necessitated a change in leadership.
"Even I would be hurt if something like that happened to me. Following Hardik Pandya's return, Bumrah can think, 'I am from Gujarat, I could have captained that team'.
"I'm not sure if it's miscommunication. I have interacted with Bumrah, a very down-to-earth person, and a fantastic human being. If he is getting aggravated, obviously, something must have happened. It's quite possible that he was looking to lead MI, especially with the T20 World Cup coming up (next year)," Srikkanth concluded.
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