"Say no to captaincy": Ex-India opener urges Hardik Pandya to step down from MI's captaincy

Former Team India captain Kris Srikkanth said that the Mumbai Indians (MI) should change their captain ahead of the Indian Premier League (IPL) 2026 season. Srikkanth urged the franchise management to replace Hardik Pandya with T20 World Cup-winning captain Suryakumar Yadav to lead the side.

MI will enter the upcoming season boasting a formidable core featuring Rohit Sharma, Jasprit Bumrah, and Tilak Varma. However, the five-time champions have not secured a championship title since 2020. MI finished last in 2024, followed by a Qualifier 2 elimination against Punjab Kings last year.

They Should Ask Suryakumar Yadav to Lead This Year - Kris Srikkanth

Speaking on his YouTube channel, Kris Srikkanth spoke about the captaincy conundrum at Mumbai Indians. He stated that Suryakumar Yadav could bring a much-needed change of luck.

"They have to come together again, the franchise owners and the upperlevel team management with Rohit Sharma, Suryakumar Yadav, and Hardik Pandya, and set this right again," Srikkanth said.

"They should ask Surya to lead this year to see if there is a change of luck. They can always appoint Surya as the captain anytime. It's not necessary that they announce it right now."

Suryakumar is coming off a memorable run as captain, having led India to the T20 World Cup 2026 title earlier this month. Meanwhile, Hardik Pandya has endured two underwhelming seasons at the helm of the franchise.

Hardik Pandya Is a Good Captain But... - Kris Srikkanth

Srikkanth further highlighted the awkwardness of having two World Cup-winning captains playing under Hardik Pandya. He noted that Suryakumar Yadav remains the most obvious leadership choice from an outside perspective.

"It's a funny situation. Hardik Pandya is a good captain. But, yes, they have two T20 World Cup-winning captains playing under him now. It's some internal policy within their setup that they have to sort out. From the outside, the obvious choice should be Suryakumar Yadav. But this might be a franchise policy," he continued.

Hardik has already proven his credentials as a leader in the IPL. He guided Gujarat Titans to the title in their debut season in 2022 and has maintained a strong overall record, winning 35 of his 60 matches as captain.

Surya, on the other hand, has been exceptional in the T20I format, winning 40 out of 52 matches as India captain, including the recent World Cup triumph. Hardik too has delivered solid results for India in T20Is, registering 10 wins in 16 matches as skipper.

Hardik Pandya Should Say ‘Let Surya Lead’ - Kris Srikkanth

Kris Srikkanth said that Hardik Pandya should voluntarily relinquish his franchise leadership duties and offer his full support to Suryakumar Yadav.

"It's a strange situation as Hardik played under Rohit and Surya to win India the World Cup. Otherwise, Hardik should himself say no to captaincy and allow Surya to lead. If Hardik himself says this to the management, things will get resolved. He should say, 'Let Surya lead and I'll support'. That's one way of solving it," said Srikkanth (via the aforementioned source).

Mumbai Indians will begin their IPL 2026 campaign on March 29 with a home clash against Kolkata Knight Riders at the Wankhede Stadium.

Also read: Mohsin Naqvi issues strong warning to players leaving PSL for IPL 2026

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