Mumbai Indians (MI) captain Hardik Pandya has hit the nets in full swing as he gears up for the upcoming Indian Premier League (IPL) 2024 season. The all-rounder, traded back to MI from the Gujarat Titans, displayed good timing, middle-barding most of the deliveries.
On Tuesday, March 12, Mumbai Indians' official social media channels shared a video of Pandya's first training session. The clip, featuring the right-hander batting aggressively, was captioned: "️ ASMR | Hardik in the nets ."
Pandya returned to his original IPL team after being released by Mumbai Indians before the 2022 mega-auction. He captained the Gujarat Titans to victory in their debut IPL season (2022) and a runner-up finish in 2023. Mumbai Indians named the 30-year-old Baroda all-rounder captain for the 2024 IPL, replacing Rohit Sharma. Sharma had led the team to five IPL titles since taking over the captaincy in 2013.
Previously, on Monday, Mumbai Indians posted a video of Pandya joining the pre-season camp. The captain set up a small mandir (Hindu shrine) in the dressing room and performed a puja (prayer ceremony), with head coach Mark Boucher also participating.
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The all-rounder recently recovered from an ankle injury and played his first Twenty20 match since last August, taking two wickets. He has joined the Mumbai Indians' pre-season camp two weeks before their season opener.
Mumbai opens its IPL 2024 campaign on March 24 against the Gujarat Titans at the Narendra Modi Stadium in Ahmedabad. This season marks a new era for the franchise under Pandya's leadership. The decision to appoint Pandya as captain came as a surprise, as Rohit Sharma was replaced after leading Mumbai to all five of their IPL titles and guiding a young team to the playoffs last year.
Date | Opponent | Venue | Time |
|---|
March 24 | Gujarat Titans | Narendra Modi Stadium, Ahmedabad | 7:30 pm |
March 27 | SunRisers Hyderabad | Rajiv Gandhi International Stadium, Hyderabad | 7:30 pm |
April 1 | Rajasthan Royals | Wankhede Stadium, Mumbai | 7:30 pm |
April 7 | Delhi Capitals | Wankhede Stadium, Mumbai | 3:30 pm |
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