Suryakumar Yadav has been appointed as the captain of Mumbai Indians in the opener match of the team against Chennai Super Kings on Sunday. This decision was taken due to Hardik Pandya’s absence from the league’s first match as he is serving a one-match suspension due to a slow over-rate offence from the previous season.
Regarding his one-match suspension, Pandya said, “That is out of my control. Last year what occurred was a part of the sport. What happened is that we bowled the last over 2-2.5 minutes late. At that time, I was not aware of the consequences. It was unfortunate but rules say it so I have to go with the process. Whether the penalty should continue in the next season or not, it is on the higher authorities.”
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He confirmed Suryakumar Yadav’s captaincy in Mumbai’s pre-season press conference on Wednesday. He said, “Surya leads India as well. When I am not there, he is the ideal choice in this format and an exciting one as well”
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Pandya also shared his opinion on having multiple captains in his team and said, “I am lucky, I have three captains who are playing with me. It adds more experience (to the side). If I require any help, I know that there are three different minds who have led India in different formats with so many years of experience. They can put the arm around my shoulder and always be there for me. I look at it that way.”
Hardik Pandya also dismissed any rumours surrounding Suryakumar Yadav’s ability despite his average performance ahead of the IPL 2025. He shared with the media, “ He has scored a lot of runs for a lot of years. I am not really concerned about his form or anything. For me, he has batter brilliantly. He has been a match-winner for India and Mumbai Indians, and he always brings energy to the team. So yeah, I am not concerned about his form”
Suryakumar Yadav is not new to captaincy having g captained both the national team and the IPL team previously. His IPL captaincy debut was in 2023 when he led MI to victory against KKR. Other than that, he has also captained the Indian T20I team in 23 matches with a winning streak of 18 matches while losing only four. His leadership led the team to victory against Australia. His experience as a senior player and aggressive approach to the game will help the team set the tone for the rest of their IPL campaign.
Also Read: IPL 2025 Opening Ceremony: Disha Patani Among Others To Perform
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