For the first time in a decade, Rohit Sharma will not be leading Mumbai Indians in the Indian Premier League. Ahead of the upcoming 2024 season of the Indian Premier League, Mumbai Indians left the fans in shock as they appointed Hardik Pandya as the franchise’s captain, replacing Rohit Sharma. Hardik was traded to Mumbai Indians from Gujarat Titans in a historic trade deal after the mini-auction in December.
Former Indian Player Wants Rohit Sharma To Play For CSK
Hardik Pandya, who led Gujarat Titans to the title win in IPL 2022 and took the team to the final of IPL 2023, was roped in by his former franchise Mumbai Indians and was given the captaincy armband, explaining that they needed to prepare for the transition period and that Rohit is expected to play a key role for the franchise in the upcoming years.
Rohit Sharma took over the captaincy of Mumbai Indians in the year 2013 from Ricky Ponting and the rest of his history. The team won as many as 5 titles under the leadership of Rohit. Therefore, the decision to replace Rohit with Hardik Pandya raised many eyebrows. All eyes will be on how Rohit will adapt to playing under the new captain Hardik Pandya in the upcoming season. Hardik Pandya will also be under tremendous pressure to fill the shoes of Rohit as MI captain.
Meanwhile, former India batter Ambati Rayudu said he would love to see Rohit Sharma play for Chennai Super Kings shortly. If this happens, it would be a potentially ground-breaking move in the history of the Indian Premier League (IPL). Rayudu backed Rohit for his captaincy and predicted that he could continue to play in the IPL for 5 to 6 more years without breaking a sweat. Speaking to News 18, Rohit said:
“I want to see him play for CSK in the near future. He has played so long for Mumbai Indians. It would be nice if he can play for CSK and win there as well. That’s (captaincy at CSK) upon him. Rohit has earned the right to take that call. It’s his call on whether or not he wants to lead or not,”
It will be interesting to see MS Dhoni’s performance in the upcoming IPL 2024 season as it could be his last season in the tournament. Dhoni, having recovered from a knee injury through surgery and rehabilitation, is all set to lead CSK once again.
There are rumors that Dhoni might retire at the end of the season, as he previously expressed his desire to return to play for CSK as a gift for his fans.