"Surprised That MI Has Moved From Rohit": Ex-India Star's Explosive Take

Former Indian cricket team opener Wasim Jaffer was surprised by Mumbai Indians' decision to appoint Hardik Pandya as the skipper ahead of the Indian Premier League (IPL) 2024 season. Hardik's appointment meant that Rohit Sharma's ten-year tenure as MI captain came to an end. During the tenure, Rohit guided them to five IPL titles - the joint most by any captain. In a recent interaction, Jaffer said that it was surprising how quickly MI moved on from Rohit following Hardik's return to the franchise and also wondered whether Rohit was informed about this move beforehand.

"I'm surprised that MI has moved from Rohit Sharma so early. It happened so quickly, I'm also a little surprised. When they did the trade, it was probably communicated to Hardik that he was going to become the captain. But whether it was communicated to Rohit, I don't know," Jaffer said on ESPNCricinfo.

"There were a couple of guys who were pretty hopeful of becoming the captain. One of them is Suryakumar Yadav, who is captaining the Indian team. He has captained really well. Jasprit Bumrah as well, he captained India in Tests. I hope it has been communicated really well. It was going to happen, but it happening straightaway this season, I am a little surprised," he added.

Hardik was the Gujarat Titans in the past two seasons and in 2022, he even led them to the title on their debut season in the competition. However, the all-rounder completed a sensational trade move back to MI ahead of the new season.

Jaffer also wondered what the dynamic between the two players will be following the decision taken by MI and how the relationship will alter if Hardik plays under Rohit's leadership in the T20 World Cup 2024.

"It will be interesting to see if he (Rohit Sharma) will captain in the T20 World Cup, that is going to be seen. Because, then again he is captain and Hardik will play under him. So, how does that happen?," he said.