‘Rohit Sharma was a little tired because of captaincy’ – Sunil Gavaskar upholds Hardik Pandya’s captaincy appointment

Rohit Sharma. (Photo Source: IPL/BCCI)

In a surprising move, the Mumbai Indians have appointed Hardik Pandya as their new captain for the upcoming IPL 2024, taking over from Rohit Sharma. This decision has sparked a mix of reactions within the cricket community. Renowned figure Sunil Gavaskar threw his weight behind Mumbai Indians’ choice, suggesting that the move for a fresh perspective was likely a well-considered one by the management.

Describing the shift as a ‘significant leadership transition,’ former MI coach and Global Head of Performance, Mahela Jayawardene, emphasized its role in preparing the team for the future. Gavaskar hinted at Rohit Sharma’s potential fatigue, having led both Mumbai Indians and India’s teams across formats since the start of 2022. He hinted that this change might be a strategic move to alleviate Sharma’s workload and revitalize the team under Pandya’s leadership.

“We shouldn’t go into rights and wrongs. But, the decision they have taken is for the benefit of the team. In the last two years, Rohit’s contribution, even with the bat, has dipped a little bit. Earlier, he used to score big, but in the last two years they finished No. 9 or No. 10 the year before last year and in the last year they qualified for the playoffs,” Gavaskar said speaking to Star Sports.

“But we missed seeing the mojo in Rohit Sharma that we used to see in the previous few years. Maybe, he was a little tired because of playing continuous cricket, he was a little tired because of captaincy, leading India and the franchise,” he added.

Irfan Pathan, Sanjay Manjrekar and Simon Doull opine 

The Mumbai Indians’ change in leadership had been brewing since the remarkable trade deal bringing back Hardik Pandya ahead of the IPL 2024 auction. Initially released by MI ahead of the IPL 2022 mega auction, Pandya’s stint with the Gujarat Titans showcased his leadership prowess, leading MI to victory in 2022 and a finals berth in 2023.

Reflecting on this captaincy shift and the ongoing Hardik-Rohit narrative, insights from Irfan Pathan, Sanjay Manjrekar, and Simon Doull have surfaced, each offering their perspectives on this transition. Pathan, Manjrekar, and Doull’s opinions provide varied angles to this significant shift in Mumbai Indians’ leadership dynamics.

Irfan Pathan:

“Rohit Sharma has a same stature as what MS Dhoni has in CSK. Rohit has more or less built the team with his blood and sweat as a captain. He has contributed immensely and is involved in team meetings largely. He has been an exceptional captain and I would say he is a bowler’s captain. There’s no question that the last year wasn’t good for him. When it comes to Hardik Pandya, there were already Suryakumar and Bumrah in the team who have had lead India as captains. It’s is surely going to be tough for him to manage these stalwarts and tough for management as well,” Irfan pathan said.

Sanjay Manjrekar:

“We shouldn’t be thinking sentimentally or emotionally about Rohit Sharma. I think it’s a good move, Hardik Pandya is a proven leader who has had a great run, so he is your inform T20 captain and player. Rohit Sharma has been around for a long time. So, it makes a lot of cricketing sense to have someone like Hardik Pandya, I just hope he doesn’t feel the pressure of how this has all happened, the transfer and Mumbai Indians backing him so much. Rohit Sharma, he will be the same batter and continues to be the batter when he was captain also. So I don’t the leadership change at all,” Sanjay Manjrekar said.

Simon Doull:

“It’s a transition, And I think it’s a difficult transition from Rohit’s point of view and Hardik’s point of view, coming back to the franchise he love and sort of help develop a winning strategy yet. A franchise he learnt a lot form or probably a captain he learnt a lot from. But this also a smart franchise and they are not champions for 5 times for nothing. They are business people through and through and I cannot believe for one second that there wasn’t a conversation with Rohit Sharma about bringing Hardik back,”Simon Doull said.

“He had to be the part of that conversation, because they are not ruthless, they are business people and he is a franchise guy. So there had to be a conversation around and a chat. And I think it would’ve been a mutual agreement. We want you to be there, through the first year at least and see what happens,” he added.