Mumbai Indians on Friday announced Hardik Pandya as the team's new captain, taking over the reigns from Rohit Sharma who had led the team to five title triumphs in the Indian Premier League (IPL).
The decision to remove Rohit as skipper came a shock to the team's fans, many of who showed their anger on social media.
Rohit has been playing for MI since 2011 and was elevated to the role of team captain in 2013. Hardik has also played under Rohit at MI before leaving the franchise to lead Gujarat Titans. Under Hardik, GT won the IPL in their debut season.
In the last edition of the league, GT lost to Chennai Super Kings in the final. Hardik was traded back in by MI in this year's transfer window.
Mumbai's five IPL title wins under Rohit make him the most successful captain in the tournament alongside Chennai Super Kings' icon MS Dhoni.
1/10:IPL 2024: Rohit Sharma's final season for Mumbai Indians?
Getty Images
2/10:Rohit Sharma
<p>Rohit Sharma, who led Mumbai Indians to five IPL title wins, has been replaced by Hardik Pandya for next year's Indian Premier League season. </p>
3/10:ODI World Cup
<p>Rohit recently led India to the ODI World Cup final, where India lost to Australia after winning 10 games on the trot. </p>Reuters
4/10:White-ball break
<p>Post the tournament, Rohit has taken a break from the white-ball series in South Africa and will only play in the Tests. </p>AP
5/10:From 2013 to 2023
<p>Rohit Sharma has captained Mumbai Indians for the last decade, from 2013 to 2023. </p>Getty Images
6/10:IPL 2013
<p>Handed the captaincy midway into IPL 2013 by the then MI captain Ricky Ponting, Rohit led the franchise to their maiden IPL title that season. </p>TNN
7/10:Rohit's captaincy
<p>MI also clinched the IPL under Rohit's captaincy in 2015, 2017, 2019 and 2020, and made it to the playoffs in 2023. </p>TNN
8/10:Leading from the front
<p>Rohit led MI 163 times in the IPL and the Champions League T20, winning 91 games, drawing four and losing 68. </p>TNN
9/10:Mumbai Indians
<p>MI failed to make the playoffs in 2021 and 2022, and departed the 2023 tournament knockout with a loss to Gujarat Titans in the second qualifier. </p>TNN
10/10:Mega auctions
<p>In 2025, there will be mega auctions and it is now more than clear that Rohit is no longer in Mumbai Indians' scheme of things going forward. </p>TNNSome of the surprised fans went on to burn flags, while there were also discreet posts like the 'heartbreak' emoji posted by MI batter Suryakumar Yadav.
Here's how the reactions poured in on the microblogging website 'X' (formerly Twitter):
