Mumbai Indians captain Hardik Pandya on Monday said that his predecessor Rohit Sharma will continue to be his guiding force during the IPL even as the team announces unexpected leadership ahead of the upcoming season The changes triggered “strong opposition” from fans. Pandya, who has led the Gujarat Titans for the past two seasons, returns to the Mumbai Indians as captain for the 2024 season. Rohit led Mumbai Indians to five titles and surprisingly, he was replaced by Pandya in the upcoming season.
“It won’t make any difference and he will always be there to help me. You mentioned that he is the captain of the Indian team and that helps me because what this team has achieved, it has been achieved under his leadership “…from now on, this is what he has achieved and I just have to carry it forward,” Pandya said during a media interaction here.
“I don’t think it’s going to be any awkward or any different. It’s going to be a good feeling because we’ve been competing for 10 years. I’ve spent my whole career under him and he’s going to be there throughout the competition. Put his hand on my shoulder. ‘Season,'” he added.
Pandya admitted that his move to leave the captaincy of Gujarat Titans and replace Rohit at the helm of Mumbai Indians did upset some fans.
“There is strong opposition… To be honest, we respect the fans but at the same time, we focus on the sport and what is needed. I focus on the things that are controllable, not the things that I cannot control,” Pandya explain.
“At the same time, we are very grateful to the fans. A lot of fame and love comes from them, they have every right and I respect their opinions,” he added.
Pandya, however, said he has not met Rohit in the past two months or so and will chat with the former captain only after the team begins training on Monday.
When asked if he had chatted with Rohit, Pandya replied: “Yes and no. He has been traveling and playing.”
“We are professionals and when the team comes together… we have been playing cricket… we have not met each other for only a few months. Whenever the IPL starts, that is from today , we have practice games and once he comes we will definitely have a chat,” he said.
The star all-rounder will make his return to first-class cricket in the IPL after enduring a lengthy rehabilitation from an ankle injury he suffered during the ODI World Cup at home in October.
“There is nothing wrong with my body and I plan to play all the games. In the IPL, I didn’t miss many games. Technically, I was out for three months. It was a strange injury and had nothing to do with my body. “Injured earlier. I tried to stop the ball and got injured,” Pandya said.
The 30-year-old has enjoyed instant success as the leader of the Gujarat Titans and will be looking to add another trophy to their trophy cabinet upon his return to the high-profile Mumbai side.
“For Mumbai Indians, expectations are always there. We have to focus on the process. I can’t win tomorrow, we have to wait two months and see how we prepare, how we come together. We will play a game that everyone will Like the brand,” he said.
Head coach Mark Boucher, who was sitting next to Pandya during the media interaction, was also asked about Rohit and his future role.
“Rohit is in excellent form. Expect Rohit to go out and express himself. We watched him play against England. His batting performance was outstanding,” Boucher said.
The Mumbai Indians coach hopes that the amount of cricket the team members have played in recent months will keep them in good shape for the IPL.
“Thankfully, there’s a lot of cricket going on. So, these guys are playing a lot of cricket. We’re in a really good position from a player’s point of view. The guys are in good form as well,” he said .
“Obviously, there are injuries you have to deal with. It’s about finding roles for new faces in the team. We’re in a good position as a team. We’re trying to provide guidance to the whole team on how they want to play. ,” the former South African cricketer added.
(Except for the headline, this story has not been edited by NDTV staff and is published from a syndicated feed.)
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