MI Captaincy Row Behind, Hardik Pandya Bowls To Rohit Sharma In Nets

There have been rumours of a possible rift between Rohit Sharma Hardik Pandya ever since the latter replaced the former as the captain of the Mumbai Indians for the recently concluded Indian Premier League (IPL) season. Both Rohit and Hardik had a below-par season as MI finished at the bottom of the pile with just four wins from a possible 14. Hardik endured a tough couple of months in the IPL as he was booed and criticised on and off the field by fans, including the MI faithful.

The equation between Hardik and Rohit has also been a hot topic in the lead-up to the T20 World Cup. While Rohit had travelled with the first lot of players to New York, Hardik joined the team a few days later. 

However, with India set to kick off its T20 World Cup campaign on Wednesday, it seems the two have set their differences aside, taking the first step towards uniting in the common cause for glory. In a photo shared by journalist Vimal Kumar, Rohit, captain, was batting in the nets, while Hardik, his deputy, was bowling to him.

Hardik bowling to Rohit full throttle in nets was bewitching. pic.twitter.com/7ZTJKU6eC2 — Vimal (@Vimalwa) June 4, 2024

India will start their T20 World Cup campaign on June 5 against Ireland at the newly constructed Nassau County International Cricket Stadium in New York.

The blockbuster clash between India and Pakistan will take place on June 9. India will later play tournament co-hosts USA (June 12) and Canada (June 15) to wrap up their Group A matches.

In the tournament, India will be aiming to end their ICC trophy drought, having last won the ICC Champions Trophy in 2013. Since then, India has reached the 50-over World Cup final in 2023, semifinal in 2015 and 2019, the title clash of the ICC World Test Championship in 2021 and 2023, T20 WC final in 2014, semifinals in 2016 and 2022 but failed to secure a big ICC trophy.

India squad: Rohit Sharma (C), Hardik Pandya (VC), Yashasvi Jaiswal, Virat Kohli, Suryakumar Yadav, Rishabh Pant (WK), Sanju Samson (WK), Shivam Dube, Ravindra Jadeja, Axar Patel, Kuldeep Yadav, Yuzvendra Chahal, Arshdeep Singh, Jasprit Bumrah, Mohd. SirajReserves: Shubman Gill, Rinku Singh, Khaleel Ahmed and Avesh Khan.

(With ANI Inputs)