Fans have been left utterly disappointed and gutted post the big announcement made by Mumbai Indians IPL 2024 is merely months away and ahead of the IPL major auction which is likely to be held next month, one of the most prestigious franchises owned by Ambani's Mumbai India is grabbing headlines for various reasons.
Who is the MI captain? Hardik Pandya in Rohit Sharma out
The team franchise traded Hardik Pandya from Gujrat Titans wherein he was a captain there. Mumbai Indians then named Hardik Pandya as their captain for the next edition of the Indian Premier League. The reception to the Hardik deal and the subsequent captaincy decision, however, has not gone down well amongst the fans.
A Rohit Sharma fan burns the Mumbai Indians' cap. pic.twitter.com/FtlTI20VvY
— Mufaddal Vohra (@mufaddal_vohra) December 15, 2023
MI fans unhappy with Hardik replaced as captain
Rohit Sharma has been captaining for over a decade now his 10-year-long leadership came to an end, leaving ardent MI fans disgusted and disappointed.
While some expressed their displeasure through words on social media, criticising MI's call.
Fans were enraged over the development and the followers of MI's social handles dropped drastically. Cricket fanatics unfollowed MI, and some even burnt Mumbai Indians jerseys and caps.
Videos of fans burning MI jersey and caps following Hardjik Panyda taking over the captaincy from Rohit Sharma has stormed the internet.
Mumbai Indians have lost over 400,000 followers in the past two hours!! pic.twitter.com/mIbd5YjnLy
— Oxygen ? (@imOxYoX18) December 16, 2023
The captaincy announcement is a big blow for MI fans.
To new beginnings. Good luck, #CaptainPandya ? pic.twitter.com/qRH9ABz1PY
— Mumbai Indians (@mipaltan) December 15, 2023
Shame on MI trends as Hardik replaces Rohit
Mumbai Indians were among the most followed franchises on each of the social media platforms.
On Friday, hours before the big revelation, MI had 8.6 million followers on X, which reduced to 8.2 within an hour as the five-time champions lost four lakh followers. It has also been noticed that Mumbai lost close to five lakh followers on Instagram since Friday evening, with their current figure standing at 12.7 million.
A Rohit Sharma fan burns the Mumbai Indians jersey. pic.twitter.com/WItos5hL4H
— Mufaddal Vohra (@mufaddal_vohra) December 16, 2023
Apart from fans burning jerseys and caps, social media is abuzz with hate comments amid the captaincy change row.
A Rohit Sharma fan burns the Mumbai Indians' cap. pic.twitter.com/FtlTI20VvY
— Mufaddal Vohra (@mufaddal_vohra) December 15, 2023
A user mentioned, "Can't believe #MumbaiIndians replaced #RohitSharma with Hardik Pandya as captain in #IPL2024. This decision seems not only unfair but also harsh and unjust. Shame on Mumbai Indians management! (sic)."
AB de Villiers wants fans to be happy with Pandya returning to MI
Former South Africa cricketer AB de Villiers said that fans should be happy that Pandya returned to the franchise.
"To be fair to Hardik, he was also a Mumbai boy for a long time. He was always a Mumbai boy from the start of his IPL career. He was with him when they lifted some trophies. I get your point that Surya and Bumrah sort of stayed loyal to the brand when Hardik decided to move on if you wanna say that. But he's back," AB de Villiers said on his YouTube channel.
"And I think I find it quite strange that the reaction was pretty negative. I have been reading posts that said Mumbai Indians social platform lost like 1 million followers and people are upset," he further added.
When did Hardik leave MI?
Hardik Pandya had gone to Gujarat Titans after leaving Mumbai Indians where he was named the player of the match in the 2022 IPL final wherein, they defeated Gujarat Titans defeated Rajasthan Royals. In the IPL 2023 season, Pandya's team Gujrat Titans lost to MS Dhoni's Chennai Super Kings in a final-ball thriller.
