Rohit Sharma will be uncomfortable - Sanjay Manjrekar on Hardik Pandya leading Mumbai Indians

Former Indian cricketer turned renowned expert analyst and commentator – Sanjay Manjrekar – feels that India’s all-format captain Rohit Sharma is going to find it difficult playing for the Mumbai Indians and trying to keep up with the new captain Hardik Pandya, who was brought back to the franchise with a condition that he will replace Rohit as the skipper from next season onwards.

This decision from the Mark Boucher-led MI management was not welcomed at all by the fans who even started demanding Rohit Sharma to leave the franchise right away and possibly join the Delhi Capitals. Fans were particularly pissed off for the fact that without Rohit as the captain, Mumbai weren’t able to win even a single IPL title but ever since he took over, the Mukesh Ambani-backed franchise bagged 5 titles of the toughest T20 league.

Mark Boucher’s unwelcoming remarks on Rohit Sharma playing his final IPL season

Mumbai Indians head coach Mark Boucher added further fuel to the fire lit within the franchise, after appearing in an interview and stating that Rohit could well be on his final few seasons of the IPL and that the management wanted to think about the future as well when appointing Hardik Pandya as the new captain.

“He hasn’t had best couple of seasons of late with the bat but he has done well as a captain. I just thought speaking to the whole Mumbai Indians group that this could be an opportunity for him to step in for his last year or so.” – Boucher said in that interview.

Now with all these things happening behind his back, especially after a time when team India lost the ICC Cricket World Cup 2023 finale against Australia, Rohit Sharma would be feeling awkward while playing under the regime of a player who not only made his IPL debut but also made his India debut through his support. 

And with the way Hardik Pandya moves about with his business in an all-swagger and flamboyant approach, Sanjay Manjrekar feels Rohit will feel quite uncomfortable. 

“It’s going to be tricky. Hardik Pandya is a guy who has got a bit of swag. He will carry that into the Mumbai Indians dressing room as well. And it will be a bit uncomfortable because Rohit Sharma might have thought, he will get one more year as captain.

“It will be entertaining” – Manjrekar on MI’s captaincy dilemma this season

Sanjay Manjrekar added that India’s very own Mr. 360 Suryakumar Yadav who captained the Mumbai Indians on a couple of occasions in Rohit Sharma’s absence last year, might have thought that the management would be looking at him as the franchise’s next captain. However, now that MI have replaced Rohit with Hardik Pandya, Sanjay Manjrekar has asked the fans to brace up for a spicy IPL season.

Surya thought that he might have been able to lead MI this season. But Hardik Pandya won’t let that affect him. It will be entertaining.” – Sanjay Manjrekar said via Star Sports.