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Mumbai Indians captain Hardik Pandya is likely to part ways with the franchise in 2026 after a poor season where the team failed to bounce back after a dreadful start. As an all-rounder he performed poorly with both bat and ball.
Mumbai Indians are apparently out of the competition this season after their defeat against defending champions RCB. MI are likely to part ways with a few players as they aim to rebuild their squad ahead of the next season and captain Hardik Pandya is likely to be the first player to be released.
Hardik Pandya reportedly aiming for massive trade ahead of IPL 2027
According to multiple claims from senior journalists across India, the Mumbai Indians captain is likely to be removed from the captaincy role next season. He has not played the last two matches for MI, with Suryakumar Yadav stepping in as captain.
Some reports supported by RevSportz have revealed that Pandya has called multiple team owners and expressed his willingness to be available for a potential trade ahead of the upcoming season. The trade window will be closely watched as Hardik has never been in a live auction before.
This came after Hardik had failed to cross the 150-run mark despite playing eight matches for MI this season and taking only four wickets while bowling at an economy of 11.90.
Hardik Pandya likely to be bought for more than Rs 25 crore: Report
According to some latest reports, despite Hardik’s insistence, there are not too many chances forming around another potential trade for the cricketer, who has never been a part of an auction since his debut in 2015, where he was signed by Mumbai Indians for Rs 10 lakh as a young uncapped all-rounder.
He has indeed achieved a lot to reach this far in his career, as he is likely to be sought after and bought for a big bracket of Rs 25+ if he enters the upcoming auction for IPL 2027. Only three players have been bought for such a high amount in the previous auction.
Some reports also claim that CSK and KKR will be among the teams with massive purses in the IPL auction and citing that the teams will have a mega-auction again next season, they will not shy away from eagerly investing on the Indian all-rounder.
Sources say that Hardik Pandya will not be traded on the request of the player. Hardik will be keenly scouted and is likely to be bought in the same 25+ bracket. Remember, Lucknow, CSK and KKR will be sitting with a purse of more than Rs 30-40 crore. And it’s a small auction. Only for one year. Teams…
– GS Vivek (@GSV1980) 13 May 2026
Is Hardik incapable of handling a ‘superstar’ as captain?
Indian head coach Gautam Gambhir and national selector Ajit Agarkar were criticized for not appointing Hardik Pandya as the captain of the Indian team after Rohit Sharma announced his retirement from the shortest format of international cricket.
Hardik Pandya has certainly struggled whenever he has had to deal with multiple superstars under his captaincy. He had promising performances for Gujarat Titans in the 2022 and 23 seasons, when he took them to two consecutive finals and also won an IPL title, despite the fact that their team did not have many big names and were a weak team.
Since his return to Mumbai Indians as team captain, their form in the IPL has dipped significantly, with the five-time champions finishing bottom of the points table twice in three seasons. This has exposed the poor management of superstars in Hardik’s team.
Also read: Revealed: Why is Varun Chakraborty not playing today’s match against RCB?
