After months of speculation, Hardik Pandya finally parts ways with Mumbai Indians. After leading the franchise for three seasons, Pandya joins Punjab Kings as part of a swap deal, with Arshdeep Singh moving in the other direction. With that, the question now pops up: who is going to be the next captain of the Mumbai franchise?
Two men are in the fray. One is former captain Rohit Sharma, and the other is Tilak Varma, who is at present the vice-captain of the India T20I team. Let's take a look at their candidature one by one.
Rohit has won five IPL titles with Mumbai Indians. He is a very popular figure at the franchise. Fans adore him. When he was removed ahead of the 2024 IPL, fans didn't like the move and lambasted the franchise and his replacement, Pandya, all through the season as the team finished bottom of the table for the second time in its history.
Currently, he is a popular choice, having also won ICC trophies as India captain in limited-overs cricket. New MI head coach Kieron Pollard and Rohit played together for a very large part of their IPL career. It's safe to say they understand each other very well and can guide the team back to their glorious days. Both have credentials as well as the aura.
{{/usCountry}}Currently, he is a popular choice, having also won ICC trophies as India captain in limited-overs cricket. New MI head coach Kieron Pollard and Rohit played together for a very large part of their IPL career. It's safe to say they understand each other very well and can guide the team back to their glorious days. Both have credentials as well as the aura.
{{/usCountry}}Now let's take a look at Tilak's case. In the last couple of years, he has come across as a phenomenal T20 player. In the Asia Cup last year, Tilak absorbed immense pressure and helped India beat Pakistan in the final with an unbeaten 69 off 53 balls.
It wasn't an easy chase, as India---set 147 to win---were reeling at 20/3 at one stage. But the pressure only brought out the best in Tilak. Recently, he played a similar type of knock in one of the T20I games in New Zealand. Earlier this year, he captained South Zone in the Duleep Trophy and led them to the final. In the upcoming 50-over ACC Rising Stars Asia Cup, Tilak has been entrusted with the responsibility of leading the India A team.
Two years ago, he led India A in the ACC T20 Emerging Teams Asia Cup. A few days ago, he represented India A in the third and last unofficial four-day game in New Zealand.
Rohit has a lot going for him
So, one can see clearly that Tilak is being groomed for all formats. But he is still far behind Rohit when it comes to game sense as well as popularity. MI are desperate to win back their fans, and Rohit's reappointment as captain will certainly ensure that. He has got massive captaincy experience and has proved many a time that he can take a bunch forward, whether it's at the club level or international level. When he took over the reins from Virat Kohli in 2021, he delivered two ICC trophies in the next four years.
Besides, Rohit's name has a lot of pull, and that may help MI with the business side of their work too.
When all is said and done, for now Rohit looks like a better option.