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IPL 2026: Mumbai Indians have now been asked to sack Hardik Pandya and make Jasprit Bumrah the captain of the side. Former India cricketer Sanjay Manjrekar reckons Hardik was always a ‘packaged deal’, so if you got him, you also needed to get Ashish Nehra. Manjrekar believed very few understand the game better than Bumrah and hence he is the right choice to take over. 

Bumrah as MI Captain? 

"I'd like to see Bumrah captain India, because I don't think anyone sees the game as well as he does. What he does with his bowling is not just about the action, it's also about anticipation, reading the batter, reading the situation and understanding pitches. I'm just a little disappointed that he doesn't seem interested in being captain in England. He didn't captain when Shubman Gill was made captain. But hopefully, at least in the Indian Premier League, he should get that shot," he said.

He added: "You actually caught what I was hinting at, because I think they might have to look beyond Hardik Pandya. Yeah, because that move certainly hasn't worked. It's not fair to Hardik as well. It's like a package deal. You know, if Hardik was going to come to Mumbai, then they should have got Ashish Nehra as well with him. But Ashish won't be with him."

"I'd really like to see Bumrah being given a shot because that is not as much of a burden on him as being a Test captain, where he has to stay fit and ready for every Test match," he concluded.

MI Out of Playoff Race

Mumbai are already out of the playoff race and with three games remaining, it is a good chance for them to prepare for the next season. Mumbai take on Punjab on May 14.