• Home
  • Who Said What
  • Playing Under Hardik Does Not Make Rohit Ex Indian Opener Sparks Mi Captaincy Debate

'Playing Under Hardik Does Not Make Rohit..': Ex-Indian Opener Sparks MI Captaincy Debate

Rohit Sharma and Hardik Pandya in MI training (X.com)Rohit Sharma and Hardik Pandya in MI training (X.com)

Discussions about Mumbai Indians' captaincy have surged after Hardik replaced Rohit as captain and their first IPL loss to GT. Former Indian opener Navjot Singh Sidhu suggests Rohit shouldn't feel inferior playing under Hardik.

Navjot Singh Sidhu's interesting take on Pandya-Rohit captaincy debate

Hardik Pandya's return to Mumbai Indians after a two-year stint with Gujarat, where he clinched a title and made it to the finals another time, was a sensational move. Mumbai Indians, known for their professionalism, made a bold decision by replacing five-time champion Rohit Sharma with Hardik as captain. This change hasn't been well-received by many, reflecting on-field performance. As controversies continue, Navjot Sidhu shared his opinion on the matter.

"I have played in an Indian team where five captains used to pay together. Kapil Dev, Dilip Vengsarkar, Sunil Gavaskar, Krishnamachari Srikkanth and Ravi Shastri. Pick up a brick and you will find a captain both above and below it. There were no issues because they were playing for their nation. The motivation was to play for your country. So, playing under Hardik does not make Rohit smaller."

Why Rohit should look upon at Dhoni in this matter?

Sidhu who recently came back to commentary box after a decade, highlighted Dhoni's approach to handling captaincy changes. Dhoni was willing to play under Jadeja in 2022 when Jadeja became captain, and currently, Ruturaj Gaikwad leads CSK and Dhoni plays under him. Dhoni also played under Steve Smith in RPS in 2017 when they reached the final but lost to Rohit's MI.

"Dhoni has passed the baton already and that could have happened in Mumbai Indians as well. But this is a franchise and they look at the performances. They gave it three years and when it did not work, they got a new person for the job. You need to accept it. But Rohit Sharma and MS Dhoni are great players. A dwarf is a dwarf even if he is standing at the top of a mountain and a God is a God even if they are standing at the bottom of a well," Sidhu added during the analysis on Star Sports.

MI will face SRH in their second game of IPL in Hyderabad. Match starts at 7:30 pm IST.