Speculation had begun to swirl, ahead of the retention deadline, that Mumbai Indians were set to make a stunning swoop for Hardik Pandya, Gujarat Titans’ captain in the first two seasons of the franchise’s existence. Pandya had starred at Gujarat Titans, winning the title in his first season and taking them to the final in his second, but ESPNcricinfo, among others, reported that he was set to move back to Mumbai Indians, his first IPL side, for an undisclosed fee.

Today (November 26) marks the deadline for IPL teams to confirm which players they will keep under contract and which they will let go of ahead of the auction on December 19, and there was some surprise when Pandya’s name appeared in Gujarat Titans’ list. It had seemed as if Shubman Gill was being primed to take over as captain, with the Gujarat Titans’ social media activity fuelling those rumours.

However, while today marks the deadline for franchise’s to release players, it is still possible that Pandya could end up in a Mumbai Indians shirt next season. It is widely reported that the trade deadline, separate from the release deadline, extends until seven days before the IPL auction, and so any negotiations between Gujarat Titans, Pandya and Mumbai Indians can continue.

If a deal is concluded, reports suggest it will be a lucrative one, with Mumbai Indians forking out Pandya’s salary of INR 15 crore as well as an undisclosed fee, which will be split between the all-rounder and Gujarat Titans.

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It is unclear what any move would mean for Pandya’s leadership ambitions. He has carved out a reputation as one of India’s most promising captains in his time at Gujarat Titans, but Mumbai Indians are currently captained by national skipper Rohit Sharma. Rohit is nominally India’s T20I captain, but hasn’t played an international in the shortest format since his side’s T20 World Cup semi-final defeat by England over a year ago, with Pandya regularly deputising.

That could signal an unofficial change of direction, or it could be that, with ODIs and Tests the focus for 2023, Rohit will step back into the role ahead of the 2024 T20 World Cup.