"Rohit Sharma's stature at MI is as big as MS Dhoni's at CSK" - Irfan Pathan
Irfan Pathan feels Rohit Sharma has played as big a role in the Mumbai Indians' (MI) success in the Indian Premier League (IPL) as MS Dhoni has done for the Chennai Super Kings (CSK).
MI traded in Hardik Pandya from the Gujarat Titans ahead of the IPL 2024 auction. They recently named him as their skipper for next season despite the presence of Rohit Sharma, who led them to all five of their IPL titles, in their squad.
During a discussion on Star Sports, Pathan was asked whether Rohit's presence would help Pandya's cause as the Mumbai Indians skipper, to which he responded:
"Firstly, Rohit Sharma's stature at MI is as big as MS Dhoni's at CSK. He has virtually built this team as a captain with his blood and sweat. He has contributed a lot. He was involved a lot in team meetings."
The former India all-rounder claimed that Rohit led a weak Mumbai Indians outfit to the playoffs in IPL 2023. He elaborated:
"He is an outstanding captain. I consider him a bowler's captain who has taken this team forward for many years. The team they had last year, how many people would have believed that they could qualify with that team, and he got them to qualify as a captain."
Pathan added that the five-time champions were without Jasprit Bumrah's services, with Jofra Archer also not firing in the matches he played. He said:
"The bowling was weak. Jofra Archer wasn't there, his form was also not good when he was there. He didn't get Bumrah's facilities. Considering that, it was a very good year as captain. So there was no question mark there."
Bumrah was ruled out of IPL 2023 as he was recuperating from back surgery. Archer, who was available intermittently, picked up only two wickets and conceded an average of 9.50 runs per over in the five matches he played.
"Hardik Pandya's biggest challenge will be to manage Rohit Sharma, Suryakumar Yadav and Jasprit Bumrah and take the team forward" - Irfan Pathan
Irfan Pathan reckons managing Rohit Sharma, Suryakumar Yadav and Jasprit Bumrah will be a challenge for Hardik Pandya. He stated:
"Now when this Hardik Pandya decision has been taken, I feel Suryakumar Yadav and Jasprit Bumrah were with them. Hardik Pandya's biggest challenge will be to manage Rohit Sharma, Suryakumar Yadav and Jasprit Bumrah, who are all leaders in themselves, and take the team forward."
The cricketer-turned-commentator pointed out that Suryakumar has been leading India's T20I side lately and that Bumrah has also captained the Men in Blue. He concluded by opining that the Mumbai Indians and Pandya's success will be dependent on how the latter manages the three seniors along with the rest of the players and reiterated that it won't be easy at all.