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Mumbai Indians (MI) captain Hardik Pandya was seen in the nets after he joined the franchise for preparations ahead of the Indian Premier League (IPL) 2024 season. The all-rounder looked in good touch as he timed most of the deliveries from the middle of the bat.
Pandya returned to his original IPL franchise following a trade deal between Mumbai Indians and Gujarat Titans. After the 30-year-old was released by MI ahead of the 2022 mega auction, he moved to the Gujarat franchise. Under Pandya, GT lifted the IPL title in their maiden season in 2022 and finished runners-up in 2023.
In a huge decision that divided opinion, MI named the Baroda all-rounder as captain for the IPL 2024 season, replacing Rohit Sharma. The latter had been at the helm since 2013 and led the Mumbai Indians to five trophies.
On Tuesday, March 12, Mumbai Indians’ social media handles shared a video of Pandya’s first training session for IPL 2024. The clip, in which the right-hander is seen playing aggressively, was shared with the caption:
“🎙️🎧 ASMR | Hardik in the nets 😍.”
Earlier, on Monday, Mumbai Indians shared a video of Pandya joining the franchise for their pre-season camp.
The captain set up a small mandir in the dressing room and performed pooja, with head coach Mark Boucher also taking part in the ritual.
“Don't think Hardik Pandya is that big a loss really” - Brad Hogg on Gujarat Titans trading all-rounder to MI
Former Australian cricketer Brad Hogg reckons that Gujarat Titans will not miss the services of their former captain Pandya a lot in IPL 2024. Instead, he opined that GT are better off without him.
"I don't think Hardik Pandya is that big a loss really (for GT). Yes, he is a quality all-rounder in the middle order, but they can cover it. They have got really good bowling depth there.
"He was batting in the top order, but I don't think he was best suited there, so Gujarat Titans are better off without him," Hogg said on his YouTube channel.
On the versatile cricketer returning to Mumbai Indians, Hogg said:
"Mumbai are better off having an Indian all-rounder batting in the lower middle order, and I think that's where Hardik will bat. I think we will see Hardik back at his best with Mumbai Indians.”
Incidentally, MI begin their IPL 2024 campaign against GT on March 24 in Ahmedabad.
