IPL Countdown | Can new skipper Hardik be the game-changer for Mumbai Indians?

Hardik Pandya's return to Mumbai Indians sparks controversy and challenges as the team prepares for IPL 17.

Hardik Pandya is back. So is Jasprit Bumrah. But more than discussing Mumbai Indians empty cabinet in the Indian Premier League for three years, the franchise has been in the news for all the wrong reasons.

Hardik’s return to MI – perhaps the most significant off-season trade in the history of the league so far – has caused a stir among the loyal fans that refuses to die even as IPL 17 is hours away from getting started. Captain Hardik seems to have turned the loyal fans away, who still remain in awe of Rohit Sharma as the captain.

Besides reducing the fan-base, Hardik’s return, especially as captain, – at the cost of Cameron Green’s trade-out – may have possibly created ego issues among the senior pros. Not just Rohit, but the likes of Suryakumar Yadav and Bumrah who had been waiting in the wings to take over the mantle if required will have every reason to feel gutted.

If Hardik, the all-rounder, ensures that the flock is united on and off the field, only then will his on-field performance count at the end of the season. Ishan Kishan will also be under scanner, making a return to big-stage ticket after being excluded from the BCCI central contracts list.

Despite Bumrah’s fitness, Mumbai Indians have plenty to ponder over the combination early on. Suryakumar has been sidelined for the first week while Dilshan Madushanka and Gerald Coetzee remain doubtful starters for the first few games.

It leaves Akash Madhwal – the find of 2023 – to pair with Bumrah and share the pace-bowling workload, at least in the initial phase of the tournament. Besides, it’s high time Tim David starts repaying the faith in him as Kieron Pollard’s successor as the finisher.

MI will also be hoping for Tilak Varma to rise to the occasion and stake a claim for India’s T20 World Cup campaign with a strong outing up front, especially in Suryakumar’s absence.