Mumbai Indians Once again the Indian Premier League will go into the 2026 season as the strongest contender on paper, boasting a star-studded line-up. Hardik PandyaRohit Sharma, Surya Kumar Yadav, Jaspreet Bumrah and Tilak Verma. Despite their strong squad, the five-time champions have not lifted the trophy since their last triumph in 2020.The franchise underwent a major change in 2024 when Hardik Pandya returned from Gujarat Titans and took over the captaincy from Rohit Sharma. The transition was not smooth, with fan backlash and on-field struggles resulting in a last-place finish that season. The following year saw improvement, as Mumbai reached the play-offs, but their campaign ended with a defeat to Punjab Kings in Qualifier 2, led by Shreyas Iyer.Ahead of the 2026 season, the former India selector Chris Srikanth Considered the leadership debate suggesting a possible change in captaincy. He believes Suryakumar Yadav, who is leading India to T20 World Cup success, could be given the reins to see if he changes the team’s fortunes.“They, once again, the franchise owners and the team management along with Rohit Sharma, Suryakumar Yadav, and Hardik Pandya will have to decide this right. They should ask Surya to lead this year if fortunes change. They can appoint Surya as captain anytime. They don’t need to announce it now,” Srikan said on his YouTube channel.He highlighted the unusual dynamics within the squad, pointing out that several World Cup-winning leaders are currently playing under Hardik.“It’s a funny situation. Hardik Pandya is a good captain. But, yes, he has two T20 World Cup-winning captains playing under him now. It’s some internal policy within their setup that they have to address. From the outside, the obvious choice should be Suryakumar Yadav. But it could be a franchise policy,” he added.Describing it as a “strange situation”, Srikanth suggested that it could be explained if Hardik himself chose to step aside.“It’s a strange situation, as Hardik helped India win the World Cup under the leadership of Rohit and Suriya. Otherwise, Hardik himself should decline the captaincy and allow Suriya to lead. If Hardik himself tells the management that, then things will be resolved. He should say, ‘Let Suriya lead and I will support’,” Srikanth said.Mumbai Indians will begin their IPL 2026 campaign against Kolkata Knight Riders on March 29 at the Wankhede Stadium in Mumbai.
