IPL 2025 : Brad Hogg Backs MI’s Decision To Replace Rohit Sharma With Hardik Pandya As Captain For IPL 2024 Edition

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Hardik Pandya’s Mumbai Indians failed to win their first match of Indian Premier League 2024 against Gujarat Titans. After coming back as the MI captain, Hardik Pandya failed to inspire his team to a win, failing both with bat and ball, and possibly as a captain as well. Hardik Pandya was criticized for starting with the ball instead of Jasprit Bumrah and then coming in too late in MI’s chase of 169 runs on Sunday, 24 March in Ahmedabad. The slump continued as Hardik Pandya’s MI lost their second match versus SunRisers Hyderabad.

Hardik Pandya ,the MI captain has not had a smooth start to his captaincy on his comeback to the franchise that made him a household name in the Indian cricketing scene. Hardik Pandya was asked about a ‘captaincy clause’ in his contract ahead of the season, a question that he ignored. Hardik Pandya too  was criticized by fans on social media as well for the treatment of Rohit Sharma during the match.

Fans and Media lashes out at Hardik Pandya’s treatment to former MI and India skipper Rohit Sharma

Captain Hardik Pandya took complete control of the proceedings in his first match as skipper of the Mumbai Indians even as the 5-time champions lost to Gujarat Titans in their IPL 2024 opener in Ahmedabad on Sunday, March 24. In a viral video, Hardik Pandya was seen commanding Rohit Sharma on the field as the former captain was moved around on the field during Gujarat Titans’ innings at the Narendra Modi Stadium.

Rohit Sharma, who has been used to fielding inside the ring, was a little surprised when he was asked to field in the deep by newly-appointed captain Hardik Pandya. The Baroda all-rounder looked animated as he wanted to get his field placements right in the final over of the Gujarat Titans innings.

Hardik Pandya  asked Rohit to go to near the boundary rope after the former captain was fielding inside the 30-yard circle. After Rohit took a position along the boundary, Hardik Pandya wanted his former captain to move to his right further as he made sure bowler Gerald Coetzee had the right man at the right areas.

A section of fans did not like what they saw as Rohit Sharma had to do the running in the final over of the Mumbai Indians’ contest. While it’s normal for a captain to use his best fielders at the right spots, emotional Rohit Sharma fans took to social media to lash out at Hardik Pandya.

In fact, Rohit Sharma took a catch in the deep in a rare sight as the former Mumbai Indians captain played the team man’s role to perfection. In the 8th over of the match, Rohit took Shubman Gill’s catch at long-on after Piyush Chawla tempted the Gujarat Titans to mistime a big shot.

It was not a happy homecoming for Hardik Pandya as the Mumbai Indians captain was booed by the Ahmedabad crowd at the toss. A large section of fans at the Narendra Modi Stadium were seemingly not happy with the Hardik’s trade from Mumbai to Gujarat. Notably, Hardik, who was first given the role of captain in the IPL by Gujarat Titans, led the team to title in 2022 and the final in 2023 before he made a shock trade move back to MI before last year’s auction.

However roads to redemption was never too late for Hardik Pandya and Mumbai Indians as after loosing first 3 matches at Wankhede the team under Hardik Pandya found winning ways back to the liking of the crowd.

Hardik Pandya as skipper of MI for 2024 instead of Rohit Sharma created sparks

Hardik Pandya made a much-hyped move back to the Mumbai Indians from Gujarat Titans ahead of the IPL 2024 and was named as the captain of the franchise, replacing the five-time IPL winning captain, Rohit Sharma.

This move was not very well received by MI fans on social media as well as the ones who visited the Wankhede Stadium throughout the IPL 2024 season and they made it a point to let Pandya and the owners know their displeasure.

Former Australia and Rajasthan Royals left-arm wrist spinner, Brad Hogg, in his recent YouTube video, backed the MI leadership for taking the decision of captaincy and talked about Rohit’s future with the franchise.

Brad Hogg backs MI’s decision to replace Rohit Sharma with Hardik Pandya as captain for IPL 2024

Former Australian spinner Brad Hogg opined that Mumbai Indians (MI) took the right call by replacing Rohit Sharma as their skipper with Hardik Pandya ahead of the 2024 edition of the Indian Premier League. He also mentioned that Sharma should not part ways with the franchise ahead of the IPL 2025 mega auction over losing the team’s captaincy.

Hogg suggested that Hardik being given the leadership position was a blessing in disguise for Sharma, who was already carrying a lot of burden on his shoulders due to Team India’s captaincy. Speaking in a video shared on his YouTube channel, the cricketer-turned-expert said:

“Yes he (Rohit Sharma) should (stay with MI) . I think Hardik Pandya coming in to captain the team is a good thing because Rohit is under pressure captaining all teams for India over the last couple of years. He needed a little bit of space and I think Mumbai did the right thing by getting Hardik Pandya into the lineup.”

It is worth mentioning that Hardik Pandya was with MI for his first seven years in the IPL. He moved to Gujarat Titans (GT) where he captained them to a title win in 2022 and a runners-up finish in 2023.

The talismanic all-rounder was traded to MI in an all-cash deal prior to IPL 2024. However, under his captaincy, the five-time champions endured a dismal campaign, finishing with the wooden spoon.

Brad Hogg on Hardik Pandya receiving a hostile reception from MI fans

Many MI fans were unhappy with Rohit Sharma’s unceremonious removal as the captain. As a result, Hardik Pandya, the new skipper, faced the wrath of the team’s supporters during IPL 2024.

Hardik was even booed at the Wankhede Stadium, MI’s home venue. Brad Hogg pointed out that the player didn’t deserve to be treated this way and hoped that he would get a better welcome from the fans next year.

Hogg said in the aforementioned video :

“Hardik Pandya doing well for India now hopefully next year that he’s going to be in his second year in a row with Mumbai Indians, the crowd just get a little bit calmer and get behind him because it was quite rude what happened last year. Yes, you’ve got your fans, you follow your particular players, but there are times when changes have to be made and Mumbai needed to make that change both for themselves and also for Rohit Sharma’s mental state.”

According to the new IPL retention rules, the franchises are allowed to retain a maximum of six players from their existing squad. The retentions can be direct retentions or with the Right to Match (RTM) option.

Also Read: IND vs ENG: “Side Arm Specialists In India Need To Work Hard To Prepare Batters For Tough Times”- Abhishek Jain Gives His Invaluable Insights

 

 


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