Rohit Sharma is set to return at the helm of Mumbai Indians as the captain of the franchise in the upcoming edition of Indian Premier League (IPL).
The five-time champions, under the leadership of Hardik Pandya, didn’t live up to the expectations in the last three seasons (2024, 2025, 2026), making the playoffs only once.
Under Pandya, Mumbai Indians managed to win just four games out of 14 in the last season, and finished ninth to extend their title drought to six years. However, according to an Indian Express report, the franchise wants Rohit to take up the leadership role once again, despite having some of the proven leaders in the setup.
The report stated that the Nita Ambani co-owned franchise had already made up his mind to move on from Pandya as captain midway into IPL 2025, but the question was who would take up the responsibility. Mumbai Indians boast the like of Suryakumar Yadav, who led India to the T20 World Cup title earlier in 2026.
“Rohit initially had suggested Tilak Varma’s name but the franchise has requested him to take over captaincy which he has now agreed. There were series of talks that had happened before him flying to New Zealand and Rohit’s suggestions were sought during appointment of new coaches as well,” the newspaper quoted a source as saying.
Notably, Rohit was the first IPL captain to win five titles. MS Dhoni joined Rohit in the list when the former led Chennai Super Kings (CSK) to title in 2023. It was Rohit in 2024, who made way for Pandya the captain.
What’s latest on Hardik Pandya?
With Rohit set to take over, all eyes will be on Pandya, who has been linked to a few franchises ever since IPL 2026 ended in a trade deal. The Indian all-rounder, who hasn’t played a game after IPL 2026, due to injuries, has been rumoured to be linked with five-time champions CSK, three-time winners Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR) and Rajasthan Royals.
Among the three franchises, Pandya’s link-up with KKR seems logical as the Shahrukh Khan co-owned franchise are in dire need for a captain after Ajinkya Rahane retired. Adding Pandya will also solve a few middle-order problems for KKR. In case Pandya’s trade doesn’t fall in place, the 32-year-old has agreed to play under Rohit’s captaincy, the report added.
Pandya, who started his IPL career at Mumbai Indians in 2015, left the franchise in 2021. He joined Gujarat Titans as the captain and led them to title on debut. The following year in 2023, Gujarat Titans finished runners-up, under Pandya. The Indian cricketer returned to Mumbai Indians in an all-cash trade deal just ahead of the 2024 season.
Mumbai Indians’ coaching overhaul
The news of Rohit’s return as captain came on the same day when the franchise announced a complete coaching overhaul. The five-time champions had already announced Kieron Pollard as the head coach, replacing Mahela Jayawardene, earlier in the week.
On Friday, Mumbai Indians named former India batter Robin Uthappa as their batting coach, New Zealand’s Mitchell McClenaghan as the bowling coach, ex-Indian national team fielding coach T Dilip was appointed in the same role and Dhawal Kulkarni as development bowling coach.
The appointments mark a return to familiar colours for Uthappa, McClenaghan and Kulkarni, who previously represented Mumbai Indians as players. A member of India’s victorious squad at the inaugural men’s T20 World Cup in 2007, the 40-year-old Uthappa had played for MI in the inaugural season of the league.