"Hardik Pandya is captain, but raja is still Rohit Sharma" - Riteish Deshmukh on Mumbai Indians camp
Indian actor Riteish Deshmukh believes Rohit Sharma continues to be the 'raja' (king) of Mumbai despite being replaced as the captain of the Mumbai Indians (MI). Hardik took over the reins from Rohit ahead of the 2024 edition of the Indian Premier League (IPL).
However, the transition wasn't smooth, with many fans expressing their displeasure over Rohit's unceremonious removal as skipper of the side. Hardik was subjected to heavy trolling throughout the season, even being booed at the team's home venue, the Wankhede Stadium.
During an appearance on journalist Shubhankar Mishra's podcast, Riteish was asked to name who's the king of Mumbai. Suggesting that Rohit is still the holder of the tag, the actor said:
"If you were to ask me who the raja of Mumbai is, it would be Rohit Sharma. Hardik Pandya is captain, but raja is still Rohit Sharma."
Hardik Pandya receiving a hostile reaction from MI fans was just the start of his misery. The all-rounder's form also came under the scanner following a string of underwhelming performances.
The 30-year-old scored 216 runs across 13 innings at an average of 18.00 and picked up 11 wickets from 12 outings at an economy rate of 10.75. To make matters worse for Hardik, MI finished with the wooden spoon, winning just four out of their 14 fixtures.
Suryakumar Yadav piped Hardik Pandya in India's T20I captaincy race after Rohit Sharma's retirement
The Rohit Sharma-led Indian team trumped South Africa by seven runs in the 2024 T20 World Cup final to end an 11-year ICC trophy drought. Rohit announced his retirement from T20Is following the Men in Blue's triumphant campaign.
Hardik Pandya was India's vice-captain at the showpiece event. He was expected to be the frontrunner to be the side's new T20I skipper after Rohit decided to bid farewell to the format.
However, the national selectors went in another direction, assigning Suryakumar Yadav the leadership position for the upcoming three-match T20I series against Sri Lanka which kicks off on Saturday, July 27.
Hardik was also removed as the vice-captain, with Shubman Gill set to deputize in the two white-ball formats. Rohit will continue to be the skipper for ODIs and Test matches.
He will be seen in action in the three-match ODI series against Sri Lanka, beginning on Friday, August 2.