Watch: ‘You’ll have to go back’ – Hardik Pandya moves ex-captain Rohit Sharma around in the field

Watch: Rohit Sharma, who generally fields in the in-field, was shuffled around by new Mumbai Indians skipper Hardik Pandya and was even sent to long-on at one point during the IPL 2024 clash against Gujarat Titans today (March 24).

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Rohit, who was replaced by Hardik as Mumbai Indians skipper and did not start a season as captain for the first time in over 4,000 days, was left surprised after he was moved around on the field during the first innings of the clash by the new captain. Hardik played for Mumbai from 2015 to 2021 moved to Gujarat Titans in 2022 but returned to his former franchise ahead of the 2024 season. A few days after he was traded from Gujarat for an all-cash deal of INR 15 crore, he was named the captain of the team, replacing the highly successful Rohit, who won five titles as skipper of Mumbai.

Hardik, who was booed upon his return to Ahmedabad, his former IPL home ground, during the toss, was constantly seen manoeuvring Rohit around. At one point, Rohit, who is generally seen fielding in the 30-yard circle, was sent near the boundary rope, to the surprise of the current India captain.

Another time, Hardik kept gesturing to Rohit to move around, leading Suresh Raina, on commentary to say, “Rohit, now Hardik is the captain, you will need to go back.”

Mumbai lost the game by six runs in the end with Rohit scoring 43 in 29 and Hardik scoring 11 in four balls.