How Is MI Looking At Their Captaincy Swap Move After Disappointing IPL 2024?
Hardik Pandya's first season as Mumbai Indians captain has ended in elimination from the playoff race.
Five-time IPL champions Mumbai Indians (MI) became the first side to be knocked out in the IPL 2024 season. The Mumbai-based franchise entered the competition under a new skipper, Hardik Pandya, and unfortunately, the Indian star all-rounder couldn't replicate his Gujarat Titans success this year at MI. The star-studded Mumbai side lost their ninth game of the season against Kolkata Knight Riders in Kolkata on Saturday and are currently reeling at the ninth position on the points table with only four wins in 13 games so far.
The power-packed batting unit didn't glue up to perform well with the bat in one of the most explosive seasons this year. The top order led by veteran Rohit Sharma and Ishan Kishan has fired only in bits and pieces, while the middle order comprising Suryakumar Yadav, Tilak Varma, and Hardik Pandya looked inconsistent throughout the season.
Despite Jasprit Bumrah's stellar performances with the ball, the bowling unit has also looked clueless, leaking runs for most of the tournament. The spin department consisting of Piyush Chawla, Mohammad Nabi, and Shreyas Gopal didn't make a difference either.
This year, MI had a captaincy change that sparked controversy, with Hardik taking over for Rohit. The franchise's fans did not take it well, even booing the all-rounder in the first few games at the Wankhede Stadium.
The captaincy swap left the team divided and scattered which also affected the dressing room atmosphere. Hence, it led the renowned MI side to their worst-ever IPL season in the tournament's history.
Well, the franchises are bound to have a bad season once in a while but let's discuss what has haunted Mumbai Indians' IPL 2024 season under new skipper Hardik Pandya.
MI's legacy
Once upon a time in the late 2010s, there was a power-packed Mumbai Indians side that could beat any T20 XI in the world.
The Mumbai-based franchise became one of the strongest sides under skipper Rohit Sharma's helm and went on to lift the IPL title record five times - 2013, 2015, 2017, 2019, and 2020.
Apart from IPL, Mumbai has also clinched the Champions League T20 title twice in 2011 and 2013.
The franchise built its core squad around captain Rohit Sharma which comprised the likes of Kieron Pollard, Lasith Malinga, Jasprit Bumrah, Suryakumar Yadav, Hardik Pandya, Ishan Kishan, Quinton de Kock and Trent Boult.
But, for the past few years, MI has looked rusty after losing its core group of players since the end of the 2021 IPL season. They have only made the playoffs once (2023) in the last four seasons including the ongoing IPL 2024.
Hardik taking over leadership duties for Rohit
After a couple of below-par seasons from the team, MI owners might have brought in Hardik Pandya for Rohit Sharma as captain keeping the former's successful campaigns at Gujarat Titans in mind.
In November 2023, MI traded all-rounder Cameron Green to Royal Challengers Bengaluru in an all-cash deal through the trading window. This transaction provided the necessary funds for MI to finalize another all-cash deal with Gujarat Titans (GT) to acquire the services of Hardik Pandya.
This can also be termed as a tactical move by the franchise considering the team's future and Rohit edging closer to the end of his career.
Even mathematically, Rohit Sharma is one of the most successful captains in the IPL history with 89 wins in 158 games for MI, boosting a win percentage of 56.
Meanwhile, Hardik Pandya's stint as Gujarat Titans' captain has also mesmerized the world as the two-year-old franchise reached the IPL finals in 2022 (champions) and 2023 consecutively.
As GT's captain, Hardik had won 22 of the 31 matches he played for the Ahmedabad-based side. The star all-rounder boosted a magnificent win percentage of 71 which caught the eyes of MI's management.
What's wrong with Hardik's captaincy in IPL 2024?
MI under Hardik Pandya looked unsettled in their IPL 2024 opener against GT where they failed to complete an easy run chase in Ahmedabad. Except for Jasprit Bumrah (20 wickets) none of the Mumbai star players have been consistent this year.
Even Hardik's own performances didn't help this season; having managed only 200 runs with the bat he is yet to score a half-century. While the fast bowler in him has probably delivered 11 wickets in as many innings.
There might be numerous factors for the downfall of Mumbai Indians this season but former IPL star batter AB de Villiers reckons Hardik Pandya's captaincy style as one of the major reasons for MI's collapse.
"The captaincy style of Hardik Pandya is quite bravado. It's ego-driven in a way, chest out," de Villiers said in a recent video on his YouTube channel. "I don't think how he walks on the field is always genuine, but he has decided that is his way of captaincy. Almost like MS (Dhoni). Cool, calm, collective, always got your chest out. But when you play with a lot of experienced players, guys who have been around for ages... They don't buy into that. It worked at GT, where it was a younger team. Sometimes, inexperienced players love to follow that kind of leadership."
Furthermore, the RCB legend shared his personal experience playing under Graeme Smith in the National team.
"I remember Graeme Smith. He was out there for the team. All I needed to do as a youngster was to follow. Now there's a Rohit (Sharma), there's a (Jasprit) Bumrah. They go like, 'All we need you to be is calm. Give us a bit of input on how to win matches. We don't need the bravado. I'm not having a go at Hardik. I love watching him play. I love him putting out his chest because I was like that. I believed that as a batter, sometimes you've got to fake it to make it," de Villiers added.
As per a report, the senior MI players have expressed their views to the coaching staff on the way the team is being led and their perspectives on the team's underwhelming results.
What's next for MI?
With the top-four spots out of reach, Mumbai Indians will only play for pride in their final league game against Lucknow Super Giants. While there are a lot of learnings and takeaways for the much-important mega-auction ahead of their next season in 2025.
Mumbai Indians
Hardik Pandya
Rohit Sharma