Mumbai Indians’ (MI) captain Hardik Pandya’s one-match suspension for his team’s over-rate offence in the last season of the Indian Premier League (IPL) will carry forward to the upcoming edition, which makes the all-rounder unavailable for his team’s season opener against Chennai Super Kings on Sunday.
Suryakumar Yadav will, thus, do the captaincy duty as confirmed by Hardik during a press conference on Wednesday, where he was accompanied by the team’s coach Mahela Jayawardene.
Go Beyond The Boundary with our YouTube channel. SUBSCRIBE NOW!
“Suryakumar Yadav leads India as well. He will lead Mumbai Indians in the first match,” said Hardik, while replying to a question on his suspension.
“I am lucky that I have three captains playing with me – Rohit (Sharma), Surya and (Jasprit) Bumrah. They always place an arm around my shoulder and are there when I need any help,” he added.
However, it’s still not certain when Bumrah will return fit from his back injury to join the MI squad. At the moment, he remains at the National Cricket Academy (NCA), which was confirmed by Jayawardene.
“We have to wait and see what NCA’s feedback on him (Bumrah) is. He is still there and in good spirits, hopefully he can join the team sooner,” said the coach. “Not having him is a challenge…it’s also an opportunity for someone else to step up and show what they are capable of.”
Hardik was also asked about his views on whether he thinks the rule should change and an offence from a previous season shouldn’t have a bearing on the subsequent season.
“That is out of my control,” said the MI captain. “Last year what occurred was part of the sport; we were one and a half or two minutes late in the last over. I didn’t know the consequences at that time. It’s unfortunate, but rules say this. So I have to go with the rules. Next year (whether) they will continue with this rule or not, that is up to the higher authorities.”
MI haven’t won their first match of an IPL season since 2012, and the absence of Hardik and Bumrah can make it tougher for the team to change that stat.
“We have a tough challenge ahead,” said coach Jayawardene.
Get the latest IPL 2025 updates on Times of India, including match schedules, team squads, and live scores for CSK, MI, RCB, KKR, SRH, LSG, DC, GT, PBKS, and RR. Find out how to watch IPL 2025 in Canada and the USA.
