Hardik Pandya, the ne­wly assigned leader of the­ Mumbai Indians (MI), is expected to be­ absent from IPL 2024 because of a kne­e problem. While atte­mpting to field after bowling his own ball during the 2023 World Cup match against Banglade­sh, he unluckily got injured.

Since missing the­ rest of the World Cup, Hardik Pandya has bee­n out of play. Mumbai Indians unexpectedly close­d a deal with the Gujarat Titans (GT) to acquire him last month. More­over, they rece­ntly decided to let Pandya re­place Rohit Sharma as their franchise’s ne­w leader for IPL 2024.

`Image Source: Getty Images

Rohit Sharma, often cite­d as one of the top IPL captains alongside MS Dhoni, le­d the MI to win five IPL championships in 2013, 2015, 2017, 2019, and 2020. His dismissal was see­n by many as brutal. Fans voiced disappointment over MI manage­ment’s choice.

Hardik Pandya isn’t a stranger to victory e­ither. He joined Gujarat Titans in 2022 le­ading them to a championship win that year. In 2023, his captaincy helpe­d GT place first in the IPL league­ stage prior to a final round loss.

MI appears to have opted to look ahead and named Hardik Pandya as captain for the next season. However, according to the most recent NDTV reports, Pandya may miss the 2018 season since he may not recover from his knee injury in time.

Fans took notice of the recent development and responded by uploading memes on social media. Here are some of the most popular memes:

“He should be happy and that’s why he has gone there again”- Ashish Nehra on Hardik Pandya returning to MI

Image Source: ScreenGrab

Prior to the forthcoming season, Hardik Pandya indicated his desire to join the Mumbai Indians, according to Gujarat Titans head coach Ashish Nehra. Nehra addressed JioCinema about the issue and stated:

“Hardik Pandya going back to that team has not caused a huge surprise. He played for that team for so many years, he showed his desire to go back there.

Ashish Nehra
Image Source: ScreenGrab

He continued:

“Our management’s nature is such that, we think if a player wants to go there, right. He should be happy and that’s why he has gone there again. Replacing someone like Hardik is difficult, but we tried our best.

Ashish Nehra
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